The Sounds of Words

By Roger Colins

The sounds of words have always been a joy and curiosity to ponder upon. So often I hear speed, babble and slang thrown around without the slightest regard for the musical nature words have and then without being essentially lyrical, words can still have an astonishing effect if one takes time to stop listening and start hearing. ____________________________________________________________ Find a word you like, a short word of one or two syllables, say it over to yourself a few times and I'll bet you penny to the pound you'll soon be laughing at the very absurdity of these arbitrary concoctions. We all have words we fancy, words we detest, words we can't even wrap our ear around. I'm reminded of the great word 'morn' and 'tinny' for those that will recall a certain Monty Python sketch. Longer words with the repetitive suffixes and affixes can come across as hum drum, scientific and dull with all thier germanic and latin roots. I tend to find such words the most interesting as far as etymological roots are concerned. Norse and Anglo Saxon have such an unexpected virtue that they almost seem impossible, thought up by a fantastical creature born out of tales passed about around a campfire. I am of course, pompously attached to my own mother tongue but I think you'll find this quite universal. The Chinese and Thai lack of tonal freedom could grant a far more hilarious experience by merely listening to these barking and honking noises when stripped of all other association, derived meaning, thought provocation and implication. Here's a few examples I enjoy the sounds of; spoon wig mum rid horn ink aim udder plane drum

Onomatopoeia Pitch Rhythm