cacophonous

adjective

ca·​coph·​o·​nous ka-ˈkä-fə-nəs How to pronounce cacophonous (audio)
-ˈkȯ-,
 also  -ˈka-
: marked by cacophony : harsh-sounding
like an old battlefield, once cacophonous with the clash of steel, the roar of cannon, the screams of wounded and dying menBrian Moore
cacophonously adverb

Examples of cacophonous in a Sentence

the cacophonous chaos on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange
Recent Examples on the Web This spring, billions of cicadas will dig their way out of the soil across most of the Midwest and Southeast, filling the air with their cacophonous soundtrack. Keely Brewer, The Daily Memphian, and Brittney J. Miller, Cedar Rapids Gazette, Journal Sentinel, 20 Feb. 2024 The cacophonous dance in the 100,000-square-foot venue helped announce the beginning of the La Vang Lunar New Year Festival, one of the largest annual gatherings in the Mid-Atlantic for Vietnamese immigrants and their families. Joe Heim, Washington Post, 20 Jan. 2024 At the beginning of the millennium, Black Eyes blazed a trail through post-hardcore punk with a cacophonous attack that shocked and awed audiences. Chris Kelly, Washington Post, 14 Dec. 2023 The interior, installed by Ralph Appelbaum Associates, was also cacophonous: packed with galleries, theaters, interactive kiosks and artifacts. Michael Kimmelman, New York Times, 17 Nov. 2023 But communities can be difficult—chaotic, contentious, cacophonous. Anna Holmes, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2023 This cacophonous novel, made up of wildly divergent arguments written by an author who refuses to let any point of view go by without cross-examination, coheres. Jennifer Wilson, The New Yorker, 24 July 2023 The conventional wisdom goes that the court retains its legitimacy by staying out of the fray of news cycles, election cycles and the cacophonous court of public opinion. Jesús Rodríguez, Washington Post, 23 June 2023 The pair — who portrayed Rick Grimes and Michonne, respectively, on the hit AMC show — walked out to cacophonous applause and excited screams from the superfans at the event. Amanda Taylor, PEOPLE.com, 22 July 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cacophonous.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin cacophōnus (borrowed from Greek kakóphōnos "disagreeable-sounding," from kako- caco- + -phōnos "having a sound [of the kind specified]," adjective derivative of phōnḗ "sound made by something living, voice, speech") + -ous — more at phono-

First Known Use

1782, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cacophonous was in 1782

Dictionary Entries Near cacophonous

Cite this Entry

“Cacophonous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cacophonous. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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