consonant
noun
- speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the vocal tract
adjective
No English definition recorded for this entry.
L314845 on Wikidata ↗Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˈkɒn.sə.nənt/ / /ˈkɑn.sə.nənt/ / /ˈkɑns.nənt/
adj
Etymology: From Middle English consonant or consonaunt, from Old French consonant, from Latin cōnsonāns (“sounding with”), from the prefix con- (“with”) + the present participle sonāns (“sounding”), from sonāre (“to sound”). The Latin is a calque of Ancient Greek σύμφωνον (súmphōnon).
- Consistent, harmonious, compatible, or in agreement.
“Each one pretends that his opinion […] is consonant to the words there used.”
“Cheerfulness, even gaiety, is consonant with every species of virtue and practice of religion, and I think it inconsistent only with impiety and vice.”
- Having the same sound.
“1645-1650, James Howell, Epistolae Ho-Elianae consonant words and syllables”
- Harmonizing together; accordant.
“consonant tones; consonant chords”
- Of or relating to consonants; made up of, or containing many, consonants.
“No Russian whose dissonant consonant name / Almost shatters to fragments the trumpet of fame.”
noun
Etymology: From Middle English consonant or consonaunt, from Old French consonant, from Latin cōnsonāns (“sounding with”), from the prefix con- (“with”) + the present participle sonāns (“sounding”), from sonāre (“to sound”). The Latin is a calque of Ancient Greek σύμφωνον (súmphōnon).
- A sound that results from the passage of air through restrictions of the oral cavity; any sound that is not the dominant sound of a syllable, the dominant sound generally being a vowel.
- A letter representing the sound of a consonant.
“Thus, when he drew up instructions in lawyer language, he expressed the important words by an initial, a medial, or a final consonant, and made scratches for all the words between; his clerks, however, understood him very well.”
““Tell me, has right anything to do with the law?” I asked. “You have used the wrong initial consonant,” he smiled in answer. “Might?” I queried; and he nodded his head.”