Accidental Onomatopoeias
| Unlike deliberate onomatopoeias (miaow, woof, crackle, tintinnabulate), accidental onomatopoeias are words that weren't intended to sound like the thing they describe, but do anyway.
Some examples: Crescendo -- evocative of the cymbal-crash climax of a symphony. Dunk -- (1919, from Pa. Dutch dunke 'to dip') -- the sound of your Butternut Snap hitting the surface of your tea. Gallop. Galoshes -- a word whose etymology (from O.Fr. galoche, a Gallic sandal) indicates it's not meant to be an onomatopoiea, despite that it's so evocative of someone happily paddling in puddles. Lugubrious -- if said in a slow, plodding, comically dismal way, it's a word that perfectly expresses itself. Phlegm. Rushes -- the sound they make when wind blows through them. Schweppes -- an accidental onomatopoeia used to good effect in Schweppes' advertising. Spelunk -- the sound of a pebble falling into a deep subterranean pool. Tappet -- I don't know what they're for, but when there's something wrong with them, they make a distinct tappetytappety sound. Thug -- the sound of one of them hitting you. Whip -- especially if you aspirate the 'whhh' and snap out the 'ip!' Yawn -- yaaawwwwnnnn! (Thanks to John Dixon, Ross Mathieson, Miranda Siemienowicz, Nigel Stone, Tom Jasper Schwerkolt-Browne and Julie Turner.) |
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