Random Writing Tips (Book 2)

Describing Human Voice

   **this list is copied from Tumblr...

adenoidal (adj): if someone’s voice is adenoidal, some of the sound seems to come through their nose.

    appealing (adj): an appealing look/voice shows that you want help, approval, or agreement.

    breathy (adj): with loud breathing noises.

    brittle (adj): if you speak in a brittle voice, you sound as if you are about to cry.

    croaky (adj): if someone’s voice sounds croaky, they speak in a low, rough voice that sounds as if they have a sore throat.

    dead (adj): if someone’s eyes or voice are dead, they feel or show no emotion.

    disembodied (adj): a disembodied voice comes from someone who you cannot see.

    flat (adj): spoken in a voice that does not go up and down; this word is often used for describing the speech of people from a particular region.

    fruity (adj): a fruity voice or laugh is deep and strong in a pleasant way.

    grating (adj): a grating voice, laugh, or sound is unpleasant and annoying.

    gravelly (adj): a gravelly voice sounds low and rough.

    gruff (adj): this voice has a rough, low sound.

    guttural (adj): a guttural sound is deep and made at the back of your throat.

    high-pitched (adj): true to its name, a high-pitched voice or sound is very high.

    hoarse (adj): someone who is hoarse, or has a hoarse voice, speaks in a low, rough voice, usually because their throat is sore.

    honeyed (adj): honeyed words or a honeyed voice sound very nice, but you cannot trust the person who is speaking.

    husky (adj): a husky voice is deep and sounds hoarse (as if you have a sore throat), often in an attractive way.

    low (adj): a low voice is quiet and difficult to hear; also used for describing a deep voice that has a long wavelength.

    matter-of-fact (adj): usually used if the person speaking knows what they are talking about (or absolutely think they know what they are talking about)

    modulated (adj): a modulated voice is controlled and pleasant to listen to.

    monotonous (adj): this kind of voice is boring and unpleasant due to the fact that it does not change in loudness or become higher/lower.

    nasal (adj): someone with a nasal voice sounds as if they are speaking through their nose.

    orotund (adj): an orotund voice is loud and clear.

    penetrating (adj): a penetrating voice is so high or loud that it makes you slightly uncomfortable.

    plummy (adj): a plummy voice or way of speaking is considered to be typical of an English person of a high social class; this word shows that you dislike people who speak like this.

    quietly (adj): in a soft, quiet voice.

    raucous (adj): a raucous voice or noise is loud and sounds rough.

    ringing (adj): a ringing voice is very loud and clear.

    rough (adj): a rough voice is not soft and is unpleasant to listen to.

    shrill (adj): a shrill voice is very loud, high, and unpleasant.

    silvery (adj): this voice is clear, light, and pleasant.

    singsong (adj): if you speak in a singsong voice, your voice rises and falls in a musical way.

    small (adj): a small voice is quiet.

    smoky (adj): a smoky voice is sexually attractive in a slightly mysterious way.

    softly spoken (adj): someone who is softly spoken has a quiet, gentle voice.

    soft-spoken (adj): speaking or said in a quiet, gentle voice.

    sotto voce (adj, adv): in a very quiet voice.

    stentorian (adj): a stentorian voice sounds very loud and severe.

    strangled (adj): a strangled sound is one that someone stops before they finish making it.

    strident (adj): this voice is loud and unpleasant.

    taut (adj): used about something such as a voice that shows someone is nervous or angry.

    thick (adj): if your voice is thick with an emotion, it sounds less clear than usual because of the emotion.

    thickly (adv): with a low voice that comes mostly from your throat.

    thin (adj): a thin voice or sound is high and unpleasant to listen to.

    throaty (adj): a throaty sound is low and seems to come from deep in your throat.

    tight (adj): shows that you are nervous or annoyed.

    toneless (adj): does not express any emotion.

    tremulous (adj): if your voice is tremulous, it is not steady; for example, because you are afraid or excited.

    wheezy (adj): a wheezy noise sounds as if it is made by someone who has difficulty breathing.

    wobbly (adj): if your voice is wobbly, it goes up and down, usually because you are frightened, not confident, or are going to cry.

    booming (adj): very loud and attention-getting.

    quavering (adj): if your voice quavers, it is not steady because you are feeling nervous or afraid.

     like a foghorn: very loud voice.

    in an undertone: using a quiet voice so that someone cannot hear you.