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Learning English Vocabulary

Onomatopoeia

Learning English Vocabulary

BBC

Language Learning, Education

4.5523 Ratings

🗓️ 5 May 2025

⏱️ 7 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Learn about words that sound like the thing they describe.

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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

This is a download from BBC Learning English. To find out more, visit our website.

0:06.4

Six minutes vocabulary.

0:08.6

From BBC learning English.com.

0:12.5

Hi, I'm Rob.

0:13.9

And I'm Catherine. Welcome to six-minute vocabulary.

0:19.5

Our subject for today is Onomatopoeia. That means words that sound like the thing they mean.

0:26.9

And Catherine and I will be trying to demonstrate some of these words today.

0:31.1

Yes, like the sound that most people's phones make when they get text messages.

0:35.5

We call that sound a beep. Beep. That's it, Rob. Yeah.

0:39.5

That's Onomatopoeia. The word sounds like the thing it means, beep. Beep, beep. Yes.

0:46.5

Have I got a message? Hold on. Right. Okay. There are lots of examples of Onomatopear in the English language,

0:51.9

and we'll take a look at some of them on today's show.

0:56.7

So let's start with a clip of Oliver

0:59.4

and he's talking about living in the city.

1:02.8

While you listen, try to answer this question.

1:05.6

How does Oliver feel about city life?

1:08.9

It's too noisy for me.

1:10.8

All the cars zooming around and honking their horns,

1:14.1

music blaring in shops,

1:16.0

machines buzzing and bleeping.

1:18.0

Even at night it isn't quiet.

1:20.0

You can still hear the fridge humming

...

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