126 STUDIES, SCIENTIFIC AND SOCIAL 



how well the minute differences of quality between various 

 common sounds are represented in their names the light 

 and moderately sharp tap, the much sharper snap, the 

 fuller and broader clap, with the less abrupt flap, the 

 duller flop, and the softer and still duller thud. 



Sounds which have an element of vibration in them are 

 represented by words containing r or cr when harsh, as in 

 creak and crack ; but when the vibration is of a more pro- 

 nounced or musical character we have clang, ring, and 

 sing ; and when vibratory objects strike together we have 

 clink and clash. How well the sound of boiling liquids is 

 represented by bubble ; the confused sound of various hard 

 objects striking together by clatter or rattle; while hiss, 

 whizz, and fizz well represent the effects of rapidly escaping 

 air or gases. 



Words imitating the sounds of various kinds of breaking 

 objects are highly characteristic. Beginning with squash, 

 which applies best to soft fruits, we find crush, in which 

 the cr represents the somewhat harsh sound of the initial 

 break, as in crack ; and crunch, in which we seem to hear 

 the final crushing up of the hard pieces into which the 

 first crack reduced the object. In grind we have this 

 final breaking up into dust alone represented ; while in 

 crumble we have the disintegration of a much softer 

 substance under moderate pressure. Split represents the 

 sudden, sharp sound of splitting wood ; tear, the violent 

 pulling asunder of a woven fabric ; and rip, the still harsher 

 sound when a seam is cut or torn apart. In scratch, 

 we have the sound first represented, followed by the 

 interj ectional ach of pain which is the result of the action. 

 In the word saw we have an imperfect imitation of the 

 sound produced by sawing, though in Sanscrit, and in 

 many of the languages of semi civilized peoples, it is more 

 exactly imitative. 1 



The sounds produced by liquids in motion are often 

 indicated by sh, as in wash, splash, and dash; a quantity 

 of liquid falling to the ground causes a slop which repre- 



1 See Tylor's Primitive Culture, vol. i., p. 191, where a rather full 

 account is given of imitative words in the languages of all parts of 

 the world. 



