ONOMATOPOEIA

 

'Meow' is a good example of onomatopoeia mastered best so far by cats.

Poets and writers have used it to varying degrees of aptitude and comprehension:

“I WAS SITTING IN MCSORLEY’S” BY E. E. CUMMING

the Bar.tinking luscious jigs dint of ripe silver with warm-lyish wetflat splurging smells waltz the glush of squirting taps plus slush of foam knocked off and a faint piddle-of-drops she says I ploc spittle what the lands thaz me kid in no sir hopping sawdust you kiddo
he’s a palping wreaths of badly Yep cigars who jim him why gluey grins topple together eyes pout gestures stickily point made glints squinting who’s a wink bum-nothing and money fuzzily mouths take big wobbly foot
steps every goggle cent of it get out ears dribbles soft right old feller belch the chap hic summore eh chuckles skulch. . . .

Finnegan’s Wake BY JAMES JOYCE

The fall (bababadalgharaghtakamminarronnkonnbronntonner-ronntuonnthunntrovarrhounawnskawntoohoohoordenenthur-nuk!) of a once wallstrait oldparr is retaled early in bed and later on life down through all christian minstrelsy.

“THE RAVEN” BY EDGAR ALLAN POE

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore—
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door—
“‘Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door—
Only this and nothing more.”

For Whom the Bell Tolls BY ERNEST HEMINGWAY

He saw nothing and heard nothing but he could feel his heart pounding and then he heard the clack on stone and the leaping, dropping clicks of a small rock falling.

I imagine that you can recall many words that are onomatopoeic like achoo, bam, bang, clackety-clack, hiccup, sizzle, clip-clop and ahem. You musicians will be empirically familiar with words like racket, clatter, drone, clang, squeak, screech and boing.

I was thinking of The Old Girl this morning when I got up early to watch the (disappointing) England vs Argentina World Cup Rugby game. I went into the kitchen to make a cup of tea and saw that I'd left the roasting pan in the sink unwashed. The Old Girl's in Auckland for a couple of weeks but I could 'hear' her in my head saying "Grrrrrr."

She's the only person I know who says "Grrrrr". It always makes me laugh which irritates her and makes her say more "grrrrrs"

A friend, now sadly departed used to sneeze with a clearly articulate "Ah-tish-oo".

She was the only person I ever heard sneezing like that.

Do you readers have any further examples?