sonorous

/ˈsɒn.əɹ.əs/

//ˈsɒn.əɹ.əs// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"sonorous" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“sonorous” is uncommon English (frequency #70,274 among 54,294 “S” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#70,274
frequency rank, English
54,294
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Capable of giving out a deep, resonant sound.

Corpus desk

Index EN-sonorous · sonorous · English

sonorous · rank #70,274 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #70,274
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 54,294
  • PHOTO-FINISH soufflé

Nearest frequency peer: soufflé (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “sonorous”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “sonorous” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of May 6, 2026
Key facts for sonorous
PropertyValue
Headwordsonorous
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈsɒn.əɹ.əs/
Letters8
Frequency rank#70,274
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “sonorous” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). sonorous lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

sonorous is uncommon English at frequency #70,274 among 54,294 “S” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈsɒn.əɹ.əs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for sonorous, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin sonōrus, from sonor (“sound”), early 17th century. The correct English form is sonorous, spelled S-O-N-O-R-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Capable of giving out a deep, resonant sound.
  2. 2
    Full of sound and rich, as in language or verse.
  3. 3
    Wordy or grandiloquent.
  4. 4
    Produced with a relatively open vocal tract and relatively little obstruction of airflow.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how sonorous appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The highlight of the hike was the sonorous cave, which produced a ringing echo from the hiker’s shouts.
  2. The Oath is redacted ; pronounced aloud by President Bailly, — and indeed in such a sonorous tone, that the cloud of witnesses, even outdoors, hear it, and bellow response to it.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin sonōrus, from sonor (“sound”), early 17th century.

Synonyms

sonoralboomingcanorousprolixsesquipedalianverboseboom-boomorotundremugientresonantresoundingreverberantrotundsonoroustympanicvibrant

Antonyms

high-pitchednonsonorouspipingreedytinnyunsonorouswhistling

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "sonorous"?
"sonorous" is spelled S-O-N-O-R-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsɒn.əɹ.əs/.
What does "sonorous" mean?
As an adjective, "sonorous" means: Capable of giving out a deep, resonant sound.
How do you pronounce "sonorous"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sonorous" is /ˈsɒn.əɹ.əs/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "sonorous"?
Borrowed from Latin sonōrus, from sonor (“sound”), early 17th century. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "sonorous", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

sphagnum#70,281slowpoke#70,262stepwise#70,295seigneur#70,244
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list