Onomatopoeia: The Best Word in the English Language
What is fun to say, impressive to spell and a snap to use? Onomatopoeia, of course.
Try saying "onomatopoeia" ten times fast.
I bet you almost sound like an auctioneer.
Now that you've seen onomatopoeia a few times in this article, close your eyes and try to spell it.
Congratulations if you got it right.
Onomatopoeia is the silliest sounding word in the English language.
It's also a great tool for a writer to use.
Onomatopoeia is a word that sounds like what it is.
For example, "The basketball went swish as it sailed through the hoop.
" When you say the word swish, it sounds exactly like the sound that the ball makes as it glides through the net.
Another example is, "I was startled when the person sitting next to me in the library made a loud crunch as she bit down on the carrot she snuck in.
" We have the Greeks to thank for onomatopoeia.
It comes from the Greek word onomatopoeia.
Onoma is name and poiein is to make.
Literally, it is word-making.
We take a sound and translate it into a word that we can spell.
Using onomatopoeia allows the reader to hear the sound and helps your writing to come to life.
Which is more interesting to read? "The helicopter was above us.
" or "The helicopter roared above us.
" Nursery rhymes are usually our first introduction to poetry and also onomatopoeias.
Consider "Baa, baa black sheep, have you any wool" or "Hickory dickory dock, the mouse ran up the clock...
" I bet you can think of many, many more examples.
By using onomatopoeia, nursery rhymes introduce us to the idea that language is amusing and entertaining.
Here are three great ways to teach onomatopoeia: 1: Hand out cookies or potato chips or even carrots.
Have your child take a bite and describe the sound it makes.
Crunch! 2: Onomatopoeia Hangman.
This is played just like regular Hangman, except that the words must be onomatopoetic.
You can use a piece of paper or a white board for this.
3: Onomatopoeia matching game.
You can either have a row of pictures and a row of words that must be matched or you can cut out the words and pictures and play it like a memory game.
Each player turns over two squares.
If the word matches the picture, they keep the pair.
Otherwise, the squares must be turned back over and wait for the next player.
You can use any number of pairs for this game.
Hooray! Now you know what an onomatopoeia is and how to use it.
Try saying "onomatopoeia" ten times fast.
I bet you almost sound like an auctioneer.
Now that you've seen onomatopoeia a few times in this article, close your eyes and try to spell it.
Congratulations if you got it right.
Onomatopoeia is the silliest sounding word in the English language.
It's also a great tool for a writer to use.
Onomatopoeia is a word that sounds like what it is.
For example, "The basketball went swish as it sailed through the hoop.
" When you say the word swish, it sounds exactly like the sound that the ball makes as it glides through the net.
Another example is, "I was startled when the person sitting next to me in the library made a loud crunch as she bit down on the carrot she snuck in.
" We have the Greeks to thank for onomatopoeia.
It comes from the Greek word onomatopoeia.
Onoma is name and poiein is to make.
Literally, it is word-making.
We take a sound and translate it into a word that we can spell.
Using onomatopoeia allows the reader to hear the sound and helps your writing to come to life.
Which is more interesting to read? "The helicopter was above us.
" or "The helicopter roared above us.
" Nursery rhymes are usually our first introduction to poetry and also onomatopoeias.
Consider "Baa, baa black sheep, have you any wool" or "Hickory dickory dock, the mouse ran up the clock...
" I bet you can think of many, many more examples.
By using onomatopoeia, nursery rhymes introduce us to the idea that language is amusing and entertaining.
Here are three great ways to teach onomatopoeia: 1: Hand out cookies or potato chips or even carrots.
Have your child take a bite and describe the sound it makes.
Crunch! 2: Onomatopoeia Hangman.
This is played just like regular Hangman, except that the words must be onomatopoetic.
You can use a piece of paper or a white board for this.
3: Onomatopoeia matching game.
You can either have a row of pictures and a row of words that must be matched or you can cut out the words and pictures and play it like a memory game.
Each player turns over two squares.
If the word matches the picture, they keep the pair.
Otherwise, the squares must be turned back over and wait for the next player.
You can use any number of pairs for this game.
Hooray! Now you know what an onomatopoeia is and how to use it.