I’ve written about onomatopoeia in the past, but focused mainly on animal and ‘thing’-related sounds. Today we are going to look at some of the sounds that humans make and how they are spelled. First of all take a look at this great infographic from Grammar.net and all the examples it has of onomatopoeia. (Remember: onomatopoeia is a word that imitates a natural sound.)
Image from http://www.grammar.net/hi-res.
There are three examples of human sounds in the picture above: giggle, gurgle, and hiccup, but there are so many more examples of human-made onomatopoeia I want to share with you. Below is a more extensive list.
Sounds humans make and how to write these sounds as words:
achoo (or atchoo) – the sound of sneezing
ah (or ahhhhhhhhhh) – a sound that expresses relief or relaxation
aha – the sound we make when we discover something (Example: Aha, there are my keys!)
arg – a sound used to express upset or pain
bah – this is used to express contempt, disdain or severe upset
boo – a sound made when startling someone or trying to surprise them
burr – the sound a person makes to indicate he or she is cold
chomp – the sound of taking a bite
crunch – the sound made when eating crunchy food like crackers or chips; also the sound of footsteps on hard stones like gravel
d’oh – a sound made when someone suddenly realizes they have made a foolish mistake; Homer Simpson is famous for making this sound, you can hear him do this here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlL6cQAzLdE
eek – the sound a person makes when he or she is scared; this sound is often made when someone is scared by something small like a mouse, not when being scared by something big like a bear
glug – the sound of swallowing a lot of liquid quickly
ha-ha – the sound of laughter
humpf (or humph) – an expression of stubbornness, doubt, or contempt
hooray (or hurrah) – an exclamation of joy
huh – a sound that expresses confusion; this sound is usually made to invite someone to respond or provide more information
ooh – an expression of amazement, wonder, or understanding
phew – a sound related to fatigue or being tired
shoo – a sound made when trying to drive something (usually an animal) away (Exmpale: Shoo, shoo, get out of here.)
sniff – the sound of smelling
ta-da (or ta-dah) – a sound that means ‘here it is’ or ‘all done look at this’; this sound is usually made after completing something
uggh – an exclamation of frustration and annoyance
uh-huh – a sound that is used to indicate agreement
uh-oh – an expression of concern or dismay that something unexpected just happened
wahoo – an exclamation of joy and enthusiasm
yikes – an expression that indicates shock and usually has a negative connotation
yippee – a sound made to indicate delight (Example: Yippee, I just learned a lot of new English words!)
About the Author:Gabriele
Hi there! I am one of Transparent Language's ESL bloggers. I am a 32-year-old native English speaker who was born and raised in the United States. I am living in Washington, DC now, but I have lived all over the US and also spent many years living and working abroad.
I started teaching English as a second language in 2005 after completing a Master's in Applied Linguists and a Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults' (CELTA). Since that time I have taught ESL in the United States at the community college and university level. I have also gone on to pursue my doctorate in psychology and now I also teach courses in psychology.
I like to stay connected to ESL learners around the world through Transparent Languages ESL Blog. Please ask questions and leave comments on the blog and I will be sure to answer them.
ben:
nice to meet you! hope you respond. I’m in Korea. thanks for your contributions to education!
gabriele:
@ben Ben, Nice to meet you. I’m glad you are enjoying the blog! -Gabriele
George:
Yippee. 😉 hey! Am George Uzoma from Nigeria. Thank u very much Gabriele for ur blog. It is helpful. Hope u reply me too. Takecare.
Gabriele:
@George George,
You are very welcome. I’m glad this blog has been helpful to you!
Take care,
Gabriele
Kelly:
I’m a 23 year old College student. I love creative writing and I think even native English speakers really need lessons on how to spell the sounds we make. It helps bring stories to life.
Ashna:
I am a seventh grader. I love to write stories. I have written a story for the Flickering Flames, book written entirely by students of my school. It is published in the name of Kinjal Goyal.
I feel that when we write we need to be immensely careful of grammar and spellings. This site helped me to write a scene of another story am writing.
Thanks a lot.
Suzie:
What would the spelling for this emoji ?
Otacimar Cardoso:
Hi! Gabriele.
I´d like to know If “MAKE A SOUND” is an expression in English Language?
I really thank, for your help.
Carol:
Hello Gabriele. What would be the sound someone makes when scared by something big like a bear? Or a ghost? How would you spell it please?
Thank you,
Carol in Missouri