stentorian

American  

[sten-tawr-ee-uhn, -tohr-] / stɛnˈtɔr i ən, -ˈtoʊr- /

adjective

1. very loud or powerful in sound.

   a stentorian voice.

---

stentorian British  

/ stɛnˈtɔːrɪən /

adjective

1. (of the voice, etc) uncommonly loud

   stentorian tones

---

Other Word Forms

• stentorianly adverb
• unstentorian adjective

Etymology

Origin of stentorian

First recorded in 1600–10; Stentor + -ian

Explanation

The adjective stentorian describes a booming voice. If you're teaching a group of unruly kids, you'll need to practice a stentorian voice to be heard above the din. The adjective stentorian comes from Greek mythology. Stentor was a herald in the Trojan War, mentioned in Homer's "Iliad." Homer wrote of brazen-voiced Stentor, whose cry was as loud as that of fifty men together. So anyone with a stentorian voice has a voice like the mythic Stentor. You can also use stentorian to describe a style of speaking that emphasizes boom and power.

Example Sentences

Much of the solo vocal writing is stentorian and talky, moving the story along.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 19, 2025

We can talk in stentorian terms about whether the august body that is the U.S.

From Slate • Nov. 15, 2024

In the stentorian 18th-century cadences of historian Edward Gibbon and essayist Samuel Johnson, he painted a heroic portrait of that nation of shopkeepers and saw Britain’s current troubles in light of its glorious past.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 8, 2024

He is perhaps best known for his assortment of bow ties, his stentorian voice and his ability to deliver a 20-minute sermon without notes.

From Washington Times • Jun. 27, 2023

A strange stillness prevailed over the scene as the stentorian thunder of bombardment yielded to the minuscule cries and commands of distant voices.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson