Has anyone ever told you to add more sound-based sensory language to your writing . . . AND then said, but don’t use the words hear or sound because they are overused? Well, it has happened to me, and here’s the solution I came up with.
I discovered that many verbs not only describe a motion, but also indicate the associated sound. These verbs are called onomatopoeia. There are plenty of them to use. Here is my list of favorites.
Sound Verbs
- babble
- bang
- beep
- bark
- bawl
- blare
- blast
- bleep
- blurt
- bonk
- boo
- boom
- bubble
- bumble
- burp
- buzz
- cackle
- caw
- chatter
- chirp
- chomp
- clap
- clang
- clatter
- click
- clack
- clash
- clink
- cluck
- chug
- cluck
- coo
- cough
- crackle
- crash
- creak
- croak
- croon
- crow
- crunch
- ding
- drip
- drone
- fizz
- flush
- gag
- gasp
- gobble
- glop
- grumble
- grunt
- gulp
- gush
- guzzle
- hiccup
- hiss
- honk
- hoot
- howl
- huff
- hum
- hush
- jingle
- kerplunk
- moan
- murmur
- patter
- ping
- pitter patter
- plink
- plunk
- poof
- plop
- pop
- puff
- purr
- rap
- rattle
- roar
- rumble
- rustle
- screech
- shush
- sizzle
- slap
- slash
- shoo
- slosh
- shriek
- sigh
- sizzle
- slam
- slurp
- smack
- snap
- snarl
- sniff, sniffle
- snip
- snort
- snore
- squash
- splash
- splat, splatter
- squawk
- squeak
- squeal
- squelch
- squirt
- stomp
- swish
- swoosh
- tap
- tick tock
- tinkle
- thrum
- thud
- thump
- thwack
- toot
- twang
- tweet
- vroom
- whack
- wheeze
- whiff
- whine
- whir
- woof
- whoosh
- yap
- yelp
- zap
- zip
Writing a Sound Verb
When writing a one-word verb sentence using one of the verbs above, it is usual to set the sound word on its own line and italicize it.
EXAMPLES
Ryan lowered his shoulder and ran at he locked door.
Crash.
The door broke open.
Here is an example from my upcoming romantic suspense Lost Beneath the Tide, using several of the sound verbs.
He grasped the wheel, steering into the waves as the outboard propeller scraped and bumped along the hidden underwater boulders. Seawater splashed. The bottom of the boat smacked again, then leaned to the side, and lodged among the rocks. Water whooshed into the boat.
More on Sound Words
Not all onomatopoeia sound words are verbs. Many represent a sound made by a person, machine, or animal, bird and insect. Here is my list of these.
- achoo
- ack
- ah
- aha
- ahem
- ahoy
- aye
- argh
- arf
- bah
- bam
- boo-hoo
- choo-choo
- clickety-clack
- clip-clop
- duh
- eeeeee
- eek
- eh
- gah
- geez
- ha, ha-ha
- hee-hee
- hee-haw
- huh
- humph
- hooray
- hurrah
- ka-ching
- kapow
- nah
- oh
- ooff
- oomp
- oops
- ow
- phew
- phooey
- pow
- psst
- ptooey
- ribbit
- ta-da
- tch
- tsk
- tee-hee
- ugh
- uh
- uh-huh
- whaam
- whew
- whoa
- whoo-hoo
- yah
- yeow
- yippee
- zzz
More Sound Word Lists
101 Examples of Onomatopoeia in Sentences
English Words for Animal and Bird Sounds Includes videos of animals and insects.
Wikipedia List of Onomatopoeias This are arranged by type.
Written Sound This lists over 700 sound words
Want to learn more…
Sign up for my workshop Writing with Splash at SAVVY AUTHORS starting April 14th, 2024
What is your favorite sound word?
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