English Language & Usage Asked by Callithumpian on April 18, 2021
I’m looking for a single word for words that are fun/easy/pleasant to say—words that roll off the tongue, so to speak.
Using @MrHen's answer as a springboard, I jumped around Wikipedia's phonetic entries some and came across liquid consonants, of which English has two, /l/ and /r/. There's this on the etymology of the term:
The grammarian Dionysius Thrax used the Greek word ὑγρος (hugros, "moist") to describe the /l,r,m,n/ phonemes of classical Greek.[2] Most commentators assume that this referred to their "slippery" effect on meter in classical Greek verse when they occur as the second member of a consonant cluster.[2] This word was calqued into Latin as liquidus, whence it has been retained in the Western European phonetic tradition.
Apart from the technical definition of the term here, I like liquid as a possible answer to my question, all the more so because it is actually used in a phonetical context.
Correct answer by Callithumpian on April 18, 2021
Mellifluous, maybe?
I'm not sure if you are looking for an adjective that describes them, or a noun.
Answered by MikeVaughan on April 18, 2021
Mellifluous seems like a good fit. It itself is pleasing to say (a bonus!). :-) It comes from the Latin for "flowing" and "honey".
Answered by Andrew Flanagan on April 18, 2021
"Phonaesthetics" describes the study of such things and the appropriate word would be "euphony" or "euphonious":
A pronunciation of letters and syllables which is pleasing to the ear. (wiktionary)
Edit in response:
The phrase "articulatory phonetics" describes "how humans produce speech sounds via the interaction of different physiological structures." Phonaesthetics describes the more abstract aesthetics associated with speech. "Phonetics" includes the physical motion of speaking. Therefore, I claim that phonaesthetics includes the physical aesthetics of speech. "Euphony" refers to the pure sound aesthetics but either of these two terms should work:
Answered by MrHen on April 18, 2021
The others are good Romance derivatives. A recently popular phrase with obvious meaning is:
good mouth feel
Answered by Mitch on April 18, 2021
It seems that no word we know of is quite right, so perhaps a word should be crafted from the parts we have lying around in this thread! Specifically, I think "mellifluous" and "euphony" offer promise, even though (as the OP points out) they both are associated with an act of pleasant hearing rather than the pleasant somatic feedback from the mechanical act of speaking.
This, it seems to me, is easily fixed by drawing on another beautiful word derived from Latin, "loquacious." Though this is most commonly taken to mean "talkative," the root in Latin (loqui) simply means "to speak."
Thus, I submit for consideration either of the two following constructions:
Melloquious - Mel+loqui - (like) honey to say
Euloquious - Eu+loqui - good to say
If a loan word from another language can be found, that might be a better alternative, but if there is no fitting and compelling word to be found, then perhaps it is up to us!
Answered by Noah Johnson on April 18, 2021
I was also looking for this word and never found a good one. I like the suggestions given here but wanted to add the word that I came up with for this purpose. Eulalaiic (eu-lah-lay-ic) Etymology- eu = good and ululation= high pitched trilling sound involving movement of the uvula associated with high emotion. Plus eulalaiic is really eulalaiic
Answered by Squigs on April 18, 2021
Fantysheeny might provide a close-definition and also a fun word that is an example of the phenomenon in question. It is a dialect word from Devon in the far southwest of England.
Fantysheeny: A FANTY-SHEENY is anything showy or impressive. It derives from ‘fantoccini’, an Italian word for a puppet show. [Haggard Hawks]
Answered by Cypress Butane on April 18, 2021
I'm looking for a single word for words that are fun/easy/pleasant to say—words that roll off the tongue, so to speak.
Mellifluous is really a good word to use here. If not mellifluous, then I suggest dulciloquious.
From the OED:
Dulciloquy: A sweet or pleasing manner of speaking; sweetness of speech.
Origin: A borrowing from Latin. Etymon: Latin dulciloquium.
Etymology: < post-classical Latin dulciloquium sweet speech (from 12th cent. in British and continental sources) < classical Latin dulcis sweet (see dulce adj.) + -loquium < loquī to speak (see -loquent comb. form)...
1998 S. Byrne H, v., & O 135 Harrison's poetry..does not commend the tongues of fire of dulciloquy and poetic eloquence as capable of bringing redemption
So a person having a sweet voice would be dulciloquent.
Dulciloquent is defined by the OED as:
Of a person: sweet-spoken. Hence also of an utterance, style, etc.: characterized by pleasing or mellifluous language.
You could use dulciloquent but I guess dulciloquious is better than dulciloquent (in this context).
Dulci means honey/sweet/pleasant, loqui means speak, -ous is a suffix which means of the nature of. So dulciloquious actually means pleasant/sweet to say.
Answered by Decapitated Soul on April 18, 2021
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