This week’s theme
Perfect synonyms

This week’s words
polyhistor
bombinate
echoism
cynophilist
timbrology

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(EK-oh-iz-uhm)

MEANING:

noun: The formation of words by imitating sounds; also a word created in this manner.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Latin echo, from Greek ekho, from ekhe (sound). Earliest documented use: 1880. Another word for echoism is onomatopoeia. Here are some words coined by this process.

USAGE:

“The Steens’ inventive use of echoism transforms the noises of a car wash into a symphony of sounds, creating a sublimely poetic experience.”
Car Wash; Kirkus Reviews (Austin, Texas); Nov 15, 2000.

“‘Oh, don’t be such a fuddy-duddy!’
‘A what?’
‘An old-fashioned bore.’
‘It sounds like reduplicating echoism to me. This occidental slang does not become you, Rapture. Don’t forget you are a princess.’”
Piers Anthony; Wielding a Red Sword; Del Rey; 1986.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: