sounds 1 of 4

present tense third-person singular of sound
1
as in echoes
to continue or be repeated in a series of reflected sound waves the stranded hiker's cries for help sounded throughout the canyon

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2
3
4

sounds

2 of 4

verb (2)

present tense third-person singular of sound
1
as in plumbs
to measure the depth of (as a body of water) typically with a weighted line the pilot sounded the river to make sure we weren't in any danger of running aground

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2
as in plunges
to cast oneself head first into deep water a whale suddenly surfaced and then, just as suddenly, sounded

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sounds

3 of 4

noun (1)

plural of sound
as in hearings
range of hearing wandered off, out of her parents' sight and sound

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sounds

4 of 4

noun (2)

plural of sound
as in channels
a narrow body of water between two land masses Long Island Sound is between Connecticut and Long Island, New York

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of sounds
Verb
In several descriptions of these amateur events, including some of his own, Hemingway sounds less like a matador than a rodeo clown. — Stephen Bates, New Yorker, 22 Oct. 2026 If all of this sounds stressful, then the first-gen foldable life might not be for you. — Nilay Patel, The Verge, 21 Oct. 2026 Okay, that sounds nice, but not two houses in Manhattan, owning an Audi, and not thinking Gucci is expensive nice. — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 21 Oct. 2026 After a baby is surrendered, a parent has 60 seconds to leave before an alarm sounds. — Erin Jones, CBS News, 21 Oct. 2026 What is most impressive is how Thompson still sounds at the top of his game, more than 20 solo studio albums deep in his discography. — David Harris, SPIN, 20 Oct. 2026 But frankly, that sounds apocryphal, like a movie scene — which is helpful, because there is a film in development. — Christopher Borrelli, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026 That global warming is diminishing them might sounds counterintuitive — climate change, after all, is worsening much of the world’s extreme weather. — Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026 So testing a movie that temporarily sounds irritating is really, really hard. — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2026
Noun
Drone motors and propellers generate characteristic sounds during operation. — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 26 Oct. 2026 These sounds are strange bedfellows, but the delirium rarely feels indulgent or trivial. — Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 26 Oct. 2026 Bus noise was a similar story, with the low engine rumble handled well and only some of the higher-frequency intermittent sounds sneaking through. — Christian De Looper, PC Magazine, 26 Oct. 2026 Rather than rehashing traditional compositions, the group recognizes these sorely untapped sounds as living and malleable, creating new interpretations that bring them to our times without losing an ounce of their essence and verve. — Los Angeles Times, 26 Oct. 2026 Teenage Engineering This isn't a conventional guitar amp per se, but rather a tool to explore your creativity and experiment with different sounds. — Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 26 Oct. 2026 The American Culture Quiz is a weekly test of our unique national traits, trends, history and people, including the latest news, events and sights and sounds of the United States. — Kelly McGreal , Isabella Bernabeo, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026 La Guaira, Venezuela — The deafening roar of excavators echoes through the rubble, drowning out all other sounds. — CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026 There was Billy Strings and his arena-headlining band bringing the old-timey mountain sounds of the Stanleys into the present. — Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 19 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sounds
Verb
  • This seems like a perfectly reasonable debate/dialogue/deliberation to have without everybody--well, most bodies--running for the exits.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 24 Oct. 2026
  • But rather than any of her contemporaries, one specific anecdote from Jensen’s school years seems like the most apt context for the measured wandering on Jazz dreams.
    — Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 23 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Abbi Jacobson voices Sarah, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus plays her mom and is among the producers with Seth Rogen and Lauren Miller Rogen.
    — Clayton Davis, Variety, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Nina Sosanya voices the local veterinarian, who discovers strange objects inside her animal patients and suspects Bigfoot is on the loose, while Bitzer sets out to find his missing master.
    — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • The series begins with a prison bus pulling up to a correctional facility in Georgia, where the commander of jail operations, Major Boughner, announces how the 30 participants, 27 men and 3 women, will be divided.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Part of the problem is that friction rarely announces itself as a five-alarm fire.
    — Rhodes Kriske, Forbes.com, 20 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Ophelia’s Got Talent plumbs the depths of the nineteenth-century cult of Ophelia, epitomized in John Everett Millais’s famous painting of her watery death.
    — Caroline Lillian Schopp, Artforum, 13 May 2026
  • As Latifi plumbs the industry, what stands out is just how manufactured this content is, and how often the children are being manipulated to perform.
    — Kristen Martin, The Atlantic, 13 May 2026
Verb
  • Water cascades over an early-1900s dam and plunges 60 feet below.
    — Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Tragedy plunges community into grief Bend, a picturesque city of about 100,000 people, sits in the high desert landscape of central Oregon.
    — Alaa Elassar, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • The majority ruled that the Fifth Amendment did not require bond hearings for three men who entered the United States unlawfully but were never legally admitted.
    — Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Cook’s lawyer, Paul Tuck, also declined to discuss details of the criminal case Friday other than to say there are no upcoming hearings or filing deadlines.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • Riyadh said the discussions were aimed at keeping diplomatic channels open and preventing another escalation in hostilities.
    — Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Politics as usual As midterm elections approach, candidates up and down the ballot are blanketing the airwaves and digital channels with ads against data centers.
    — Barbara A. Trish, The Conversation, 26 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • The gorgeous and tasty caramel and cream cheese frosting looks the best when applied with a small offset spatula to give it that swirly effect on the cake.
    — Mary Shannon Wells, Southern Living, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Be suspicious of unexpected statement links Even when an email looks authentic, use the SSA website independently to access your information.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Sounds.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sounds. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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