Onomatopoeia Examples: 40 Sound Words in Sentences

By Eduminate

Pastel desk scene with a whistle, a kitchen timer, paper cups and stationery on a mint background.

These onomatopoeia examples show how a single word can imitate a sound, with 40 sound words used in sentences and sorted by where the noise comes from. You will also find poems and comics described in plain words, ways to teach the device and a short practice quiz with answers.

What is onomatopoeia?

Onomatopoeia is the use of a word that imitates the sound it names. Buzz sounds like a buzz. Splash sounds like a splash. The word comes from Greek words that mean roughly “name” and “make,” and it is said on-uh-mat-uh-PEE-uh.

Here is an onomatopoeia definition for an anchor chart: onomatopoeia is a word whose sound copies the sound of the thing it describes. It differs from most vocabulary, where the sound of a word has no link to its meaning. Nothing about the sounds in “table” tells you anything about tables, but “thud” sounds the way a thud does.

It is one device among several. If you want to see how it sits beside similes, metaphors, personification and hyperbole, our guide to figurative language examples compares them all. This post stays with sound words so you can go deeper.

A quick test

Say the word out loud and ask whether it sounds like the noise it names. If students can hear the noise in the word, it is onomatopoeia. If they have to be told, it probably is not.

Onomatopoeia examples in sentences

The onomatopoeia examples in sentences below are grouped by the source of the sound. The sound word in each sentence is in bold so students can find it quickly. Copy any of them onto cards or slides.

Water and weather

The pebble landed in the pond with a plop.
Waves splashed against the dock.
A faucet dripped all night.
The stream gurgled over the rocks.
Thunder boomed across the valley.
Rain pattered on the tin roof.
The wind whooshed past the open window.
Leaves rustled in the breeze.

Kitchen sounds

Eggs sizzled in the pan.
The soda fizzed when I opened the can.
A kernel of corn popped in the pot.
The apple gave a loud crunch when I bit it.
He slurped the last of his juice.
The kettle whistled and then clicked off.
Ice cubes clinked in the glass.

Vehicles and machines

The car horn went honk twice.
A bike bell went ding at the corner.
The race car zoomed past the stands.
The printer whirred and spat out a page.
The microwave gave a beep when it finished.
The truck rumbled down the gravel road.
Brakes screeched at the red light.

Impacts and crashes

The book landed on the floor with a thud.
Pots clanged together in the cupboard.
A door slammed somewhere upstairs.
The tray fell with a crash.
The stick gave a dry snap underfoot.
Someone knocked twice on the door.

Quiet and small sounds

The old floorboards creaked.
A mouse-sized squeak came from the hinge.
The audience gave a polite clap.
She whispered the answer.
The pen made a soft click.
The fire crackled in the fireplace.
The hall clock went tick-tock.

Animal sounds

The dog said woof.
The duck went quack by the lake.
A cow gave a long moo.
The cat let out a loud meow.
A bee buzzed over the flowers.

That gives 40 sound words, and plenty of examples of onomatopoeia for a word wall. Animal sounds are fun, but they also show something useful. Other languages spell the same sound differently. In English a dog says woof, and in Spanish it says guau. Onomatopoeia imitates a sound using the sounds a language already has, so the words are not identical from one language to the next.

Onomatopoeia in poems and comics

Poets pile up sound words to make a poem noisy, and comic artists use a single big word to make a panel loud. Short descriptions, in our own words, show students where to look.

Onomatopoeia in poems

Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “The Bells” is built around sound words. Different kinds of bells ring in different sections, and the words change to match: light, quick, tinkling words for small bells and heavy, clanging words for loud ones.
Robert Southey’s poem about a waterfall at Lodore follows the water as it rushes down a hillside. It piles up verbs that sound like splashing, rushing and crashing, so the reader hears the fall.
Alfred Tennyson’s poem “The Brook” speaks in the voice of a stream. The brook chatters, bubbles and babbles over stones, and those verbs copy the sound of moving water.

Onomatopoeia in poems often comes in clusters. Ask students to find the group of sound words in a stanza and read just those words aloud. The sound of the stanza usually comes through.

Onomatopoeia in comics and stories

Comic panels often use large, colorful sound words, such as POW, BAM or SPLAT, drawn as part of the picture. Prose writers use them more quietly, as in “the door clicked shut” or “the floor creaked.” Either way, the word lets the reader hear a moment the page cannot play.

Why writers use sound words

A sound word does three jobs at once. It tells the reader what happened, it gives the moment a sound and it sets the speed of the sentence. Compare “The glass broke” with “The glass shattered.” The second version uses a word that sounds sharp and scattered, and the reader hears it. Short, hard words such as snap, click and tap feel quick. Long, soft words such as rumble, murmur and rustle feel slow and low.

Writers also choose how loud to be. A line full of boom, crash and clang is noisy, while a line with hush, whisper and drip feels still. Asking students whether a scene is loud or quiet is a good way to choose which sound words fit.

Spelling and punctuation

Sound words are often spelled the way they sound, so spellings can vary, as in “ding-dong,” “tick-tock” and “kerplunk.” Hyphens join repeated sounds. In comics, an exclamation mark often follows the word. In prose, sound words usually sit inside normal sentences with ordinary punctuation. Students can use a dictionary to check any word they are unsure about.

Onomatopoeia or alliteration?

Students sometimes mix up onomatopoeia and alliteration because both are about sound. Alliteration repeats the same beginning sound in nearby words, as in “big blue balloons.” Onomatopoeia is about a word that imitates a noise. A line can have both: “The bees buzzed, bumping and bumbling” repeats the b sound and includes the sound word buzzed.

A simple rule works for most cases. If the sentence repeats an opening sound, look for alliteration. If a word sounds like a noise, look for onomatopoeia.

How to teach onomatopoeia

Here is one way to do it. Start with a sound-effects hunt, since the device is about listening.

Listen and list

Ask students to sit silently for a short while and write each sound they hear. Then they turn each sound into a word, such as hum, scrape or tap. Compare lists on the board and sort them by loud and soft.

Swap the verb

Write a plain sentence: “The door closed.” Ask students to replace the verb with a sound word to change the feel: slammed, clicked, thudded. Discuss how each version sounds in the reader’s ear.

Sort the sources

Use the groups above as a sorting game. Each student receives a word and places it under water, kitchen, vehicle, impact or quiet sounds. Disagreements are useful. Is “pop” a kitchen sound or an impact?

Write a sound story

Ask students to write a short scene that happens in one room, such as a kitchen or workshop, and use at least five sound words. They read the scene aloud and the class holds up a hand each time they hear one.

Ready-made practice

If you would like printable pages, the Alliteration and Onomatopoeia Worksheets are a 40 page set for grades 3 to 5. They include a lesson plan, a student worksheet, an answer key and an answer sheet. For older students, the Figurative Language Worksheets packet for grades 6 to 8 has a lesson plan, an answer key and 70 questions across 6 sections. The Simile and Metaphor Worksheets add a full answer key and lesson plan for comparison practice.

The Figurative Language Worksheets Bundle includes three packets: similes and metaphors, a wider set with personification and idioms, and alliteration and onomatopoeia. It runs to 129 pages. If you want the whole grammar and ELA shelf in one download, the Complete Grammar Worksheets Bundle holds 32 packets.

Onomatopoeia practice quiz with answers

Use this as a quick check. Items 1 to 6 ask students to find the sound word. Items 7 and 8 ask them to write.

Questions

The pan sizzled on the stove. Which word is onomatopoeia?
A balloon popped behind me. Which word is onomatopoeia?
The bell went ding. Which word is onomatopoeia?
Rain tapped against the glass. Which word is onomatopoeia?
The table is in the corner. Is there an onomatopoeia word? Yes or no.
Which word does not belong: splash, drip, table, plop?
Replace the verb “went” with a sound word: “The wheels went over the bridge.”
Write a sentence about a toaster using one sound word.

Answers

Sizzled.
Popped.
Ding.
Tapped.
No. None of the words imitates a sound.
Table. The other three imitate the sound of water or something falling in it.
Answers will vary. One option: “The wheels rumbled over the bridge.”
Answers will vary. One option: “The toaster clicked and the bread popped up.”

Frequently asked questions

What is onomatopoeia in simple words?

It is a word that sounds like the noise it names, such as buzz, splash or thud.

Is onomatopoeia a type of figurative language?

Teachers usually group it with figurative language and sound devices. Unlike a simile or metaphor, it does not compare two things. It lets the sound of a word carry the meaning.

Are words like “wow” or “ouch” onomatopoeia?

They are exclamations that show a reaction. A word is onomatopoeia when it imitates a sound in the world, such as a crash, a drip or a hiss.

Can onomatopoeia be a noun or a verb?

Both. Splash can be a noun (“a loud splash”) or a verb (“water splashed”). Many sound words work in either role.