Cacophonous: meaning, definitions and examples

🔊
Add to dictionary

cacophonous

 

[ kəˈkɒf(ə)nəs ]

Adjective
Context #1 | Adjective

sound

Involving or producing a harsh, discordant mixture of sounds.

Synonyms

clamorous, discordant, dissonant, jarring

Examples of usage

  • The cacophonous traffic in the city was overwhelming.
  • His speech was drowned out by the cacophonous music playing in the background.

Translations

Translations of the word "cacophonous" in other languages:

🇵🇹 cacofônico

🇮🇳 कर्कश

🇩🇪 kakophon

🇮🇩 kakofon

🇺🇦 какофонічний

🇵🇱 kakofoniczny

🇯🇵 不協和音の

🇫🇷 cacophonique

🇪🇸 cacofónico

🇹🇷 kakofonik

🇰🇷 불협화음의

🇸🇦 نشاز

🇨🇿 kakofonický

🇸🇰 kakofonický

🇨🇳 刺耳的

🇸🇮 kakofoničen

🇮🇸 kakófónískur

🇰🇿 какофониялы

🇬🇪 კაკოფონიური

🇦🇿 kakofon

🇲🇽 cacofónico

Etymology

The word 'cacophonous' is derived from the Greek words 'kakos' meaning 'bad' and 'phone' meaning 'voice'. It first appeared in the English language in the mid-17th century. The term is commonly used to describe unpleasant or harsh sounds that create a sense of chaos or disorder.

Word Frequency Rank

Ranking #37,182, this word is encountered relatively rarely in everyday English. It might appear in literary works or specialized texts but isn't essential for general communication.