Cacophonous

Pronunciation

• GenAm IPA: /kəˈkÉ‘fÉ™nÉ™s/
• RP IPA: /kəˈkÉ’fÉ™nÉ™s/

Origin

From Ancient Greek κακός (kakos, "bad") + φωνή (phonē, "voice").

Full definition of cacophonous

Adjective

1. Containing, consisting of, or producing harsh, unpleasant or discordant sounds.
• 2006, Everett True, Nirvana: The Biography, Da Capo Press (2007), ISBN 9780306815546, page 58:The first time I saw the NYC quartet Youth was in 1983 for their Confusion Is Sex album, when they filled The Venue in Victoria, London with a cacophonous maelstrom of mangled sounds that still reverberates, more than two decades on.
• 2011, Fern Michaels, To Taste the Wine, Kensington Books (2011), ISBN 9780758242747, page 153:and the cacophonous clatter of pots and pans accompanied the vociferous complaints of the ship's cook.
• 2012, Michael D. Breed & Janice Moore, Animal Behavior, Academic Press (2012), ISBN 9780123725813, page 199 (image caption):A colony of pelicans can be cacophonous.

Synonyms

• inharmonious, unmusical, unmelodic

Antonyms

• harmonious, musical, euphonious

Related terms

• cacophony
• cacophonic