What is an onomatopoeia?
Source: tatoeba (6061093)
Onomatopoeia
/ˌɒnəˌmætəˈpiːə/
Synonyms for "onomatopoeia" (62 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (13)
Strong matches (18)
Related words (31)
Noun(19 words)
Interjection(1 words)
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: baa, baaing, boink, bowwow theory, burp.
- Sentence evidence is available for onomatopoeia, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from derived_reverse, moby, opengloss, wiktionary, and related lexical sources.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "onomatopoeia".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "onomatopoeia"
Keep "onomatopoeia" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "onomatopoeia" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "onomatopoeia", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "onomatopoeia" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
4 entrieslexical itemlinguistic devicelinguistic researchrhetorical device
More specific
7 entriesCollocations
6 entriesonomatopoeia definitiononomatopoeia exampleonomatopoeia termonomatopoeic formonomatopoeic soundonomatopoeic word
Inflections
1 entriesDerivations
2 entriesTranslations
71 translations across 41 languages.
Albanian
1 entries- onomatope noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Armenian
1 entries- բնաձայնություն noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Azerbaijani
1 entries- təqlidi söz noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Bulgarian
1 entries- ономатопея noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Catalan
1 entries- onomatopeia noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Chinese Mandarin
4 entries- 擬聲詞 /拟声词 noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- 擬聲語 /拟声语 noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- 狀聲詞 /状声词 noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- 象聲詞 /象声词 noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Czech
2 entries- onomatopoion noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- zvukomalebné slovo noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Danish
2 entries- lydord noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- onomatopoietikon noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Dutch
2 entries- klanknabootsing noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- onomatopee noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Esperanto
2 entries- onomatopeo noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- sonimito noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Estonian
1 entries- kõlasõna noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Faroese
1 entries- ljóðorð noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Finnish
1 entries- onomatopoeettinen sana noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
French
1 entries- onomatopée noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Galician
1 entries- onomatopeia noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
German
4 entries- Klangwort noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- Onomatopoetikum noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- Schallwort noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- klangnachahmendes Wort noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Greek
1 entries- ονοματοποιία noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Hindi
2 entries- अनुकरण noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- स्वनानुकरणात्मक noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Hungarian
1 entries- hangutánzó-hangulatfestő/hangfestő szó noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Icelandic
2 entries- hljóðgervingur noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- hljóðlíkingarorð noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Italian
1 entries- onomatopea noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Japanese
4 entries- オノマトペ noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- 擬声語 noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- 擬態語 noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- 擬音語 noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Korean
1 entries- 의성어 noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Latin
2 entries- onomatopoēticum noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- vocābulum onomatopoēticum noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Macedonian
2 entries- ономатопе́ја noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- подражавање noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Māori
2 entries- kupu ororite noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- kupu pakoire oro noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Norwegian
2 entries- lydord noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- onomatopoetikon noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Persian
1 entries- نامآوا noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Polish
2 entries- onomatopeja noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- wyraz dźwiękonaśladowczy noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Portuguese
1 entries- onomatopeia noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Punjabi
2 entries- صوت noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- ਸੌਤ noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Romanian
1 entries- onomatopee noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Russian
2 entries- звукоподража́ние noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- ономатопе́я noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Serbo-Croatian
2 entries- onomatopéja noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- ономатопе́ја noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Shuar
1 entries- métek-chícham noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Spanish
1 entries- onomatopeya noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Tagalog
2 entries- onomatopeya noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- sintunog noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Turkish
2 entries- onomatope noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- yansıma sözcük noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Ukrainian
2 entries- звуконаслі́дування noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
- ономатопе́я noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Vietnamese
1 entries- từ tượng thanh noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Welsh
1 entries- onomatopeia noun (word that sounds like what it represents)
Sample sentences
3 total sentences available.
Some of the onomatopoeia in Japanese make no sense to me.
Source: tatoeba (9337166)
A woorde making called of the Grecians Onomatapoia, is when wee make wordes of our owne minde, such as bee derived from the nature of things.
Source: wiktionary
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "onomatopoeia"?
Closest matches include baa, baaing, boink, bowwow theory, burp.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "onomatopoeia"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.