Onomatopoeia

Next time you're alone, put your music on pause, turn the television off, shut the kids away for 5 minutes and just listen...
Will it be silence that you hear? Probably not, as wherever one happens to be, there is usually something, (something one may be quite oblivious to), making a noise in the background. And whether it’s the fridge humming in the kitchen, the brakes of a nearby car screaching to an abrupt halt, or the dog whimpering pathetically, begging to be let back inside, chances are that there's a word in English to mimic each of these sounds. These weird and wonderful words are what is known as onomatopoeia.
Based on the Greek words, onoma (name) and poiea (to make), onomatopoeic words are, quite literally, words that imitate sounds. They can appear as verbs, nouns, adjectives, or simply as exclamations too. And whilst they may not be the most important things to master when tackling the English language, they are, without a doubt, one of the things that make comics and children’s stories so entertaining, and they certainly make writing and speaking a lot more expressive and fun too.
on-o-ma-to-POE-ia (noun)
on-o-ma-to-POE-ic (adjective)
Onomatopoeic Word Lists by Category
- 20 Common Onomatopoeic Words 🔈
Imitative words we use every day - Onomatopoeic Words: Animals
Imitative words that are mostly like the sounds that animals make - Onomatopoeic Words: Food and Drink
Imitative words associated with cooking, eating and drinking - Onomatopoeic Words: Gasses and Liquids
Imitative words describing movement and sound of gasses and liquids - Onomatopoeic Words: Humans
Imitative words from the sounds of people - Onomatopoeic Words: Impacts
Imitative words associated with typical collisions - Onomatopoeic Words: Nature
Imitative words from the sounds of weather, sea and natural environments - Onomatopoeic Words: Objects and Machines
Imitative words from the sounds of man-made things