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What is the word for "the way a word sounds to your ear"?

English Language & Usage Asked on January 25, 2021

I do not mean “Phonaesthetics” or euphony or cacophony which carry a value judgement. Words have an audio ‘pattern’, mostly unique and different from other words. This is the unique audio “finger-print” of the word, which does not carry a un/pleasant connotation – it is simply the sound of a (particular word) being spoken. I am looking for the definition or term for the sound of word/s. Does such a term exist? I used to think it was “nomenclature”.

5 Answers

Most dictionaries will only give equivalents to the following two definitions...

phonology
1:The system of contrastive relationships among the speech sounds that constitute the fundamental components of a language.
2:The study of phonological relationships within a language or between different languages.

But here are almost 3000 written instances of...

the phonology of the word [some word being discussed]...

I think that's enough to establish that it's a valid "neutral" term to use in this way.

Answered by FumbleFingers on January 25, 2021

The characteristic sound associated with a word when it is spoken correctly is its pronunciation .

Answered by Gary's Student on January 25, 2021

Are you talking about the absolute simplest form of words?

Morpheme: A morphological unit of a language that cannot be further divided (e.g., in, come, -ing, forming incoming).

This isn't the sound of words, but the sounds that make up words.

The word for sounds of a word is: Phonology (see @FumbleFingers' answer) which is the branch of linguistics concerned with the systematic organization of sounds in languages.

An interesting field that delves into this is Morphophonology as it is a branch of linguistics which studies the interaction between morphological and phonological or phonetic processes.

Answered by Tucker on January 25, 2021

It is called a signifier.

1 Linguistics A linguistic unit or pattern, such as a succession of speech sounds, written symbols, or gestures, that conveys meaning; a linguistic sign.

The signifier of the concept "tree" is, in English, the string of speech sounds (t), (r), and (ē); in German, (b), (ou), and (m).

2 the phonological or orthographic sound or appearance of a word that can be used to describe or identify something

According to Swiss linguist Ferdinand de Saussure:

The sign (signe) is described as a "double entity", made up of the signifier, or sound image (signifiant), and the signified, or concept (signifié).

The sound image is a psychological, not a material concept, belonging to the system. Both components of the linguistic sign are inseparable.

Answered by 0.. on January 25, 2021

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