phonic

adjective

pho·​nic ˈfä-nik 

also

ˈfō- 

1

: of, relating to, or producing sound : acoustic

2

a

: of or relating to the sounds of speech

b

: of or relating to phonics

phonically

ˈfä-ni-k(ə-)lē 

also ˈfō-

adverb

Examples of phonic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

French, which has a much more restricted phonic range than English, generates puns naturally—whole sentences can be turned into homonymic equivalents with very different meanings. — Luc Sante, Harper's magazine, 10 Jan. 2019

Tics can also be phonic such as grunting, throat-clearing or sniffing. — Kate Murphy, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2017

The clicks, produced in organs known as phonic lips at rates of up to 1,000 clicks per second, are inaudible to the human ear, but detectable through special, underwater microphones. — Joanna Klein, New York Times, 9 Nov. 2016

Whales produce sounds by sending air from their nasal tract past their phonic lips – a pair of vibrating muscular folds that act like our voice box. — Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 22 Oct. 2012

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin phōnicus (in centrum phōnicum "place where the speaker stands when an echo is produced" and parallel terms), from Greek phōnḗ "sound made by something living, voice, speech" + New Latin -icus -ic entry 1 — more at phono-

First Known Use

1823, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for phonic

• chronic
• clonic
• conic
• sonic
• tonic
• anharmonic
• anionic
• avionic
• catatonic
• cationic
• chorionic
• cosmogonic

Kids Definition

phonic

adjective

pho·​nic ˈfän-ik 

also ˈfō-nik

1

: of, relating to, or producing sound

2

: of or relating to speech sounds or to phonics

phonically

-(ə-)lē 

adverb

Medical Definition

phonic

adjective

pho·​nic

ˈfän-ik, except 2b also ˈfō-nik

1

: of, relating to, or producing sound

2

a

: of or relating to the sounds of speech

b

: of or relating to phonics

phonically

-(ə-)lē 

adverb