Definition: sound
Source: WordNet (r) 1.7
sound
adj 1: financially secure and safe; "sound investments"; "a sound
economy" [ant: unsound]
2: exercising or showing good judgment; "healthy scepticism";
"a healthy fear of rattlesnakes"; "the healthy attitude of
French laws"; "healthy relations between labor and
management"; "an intelligent solution"; "a sound approach
to the problem";"sound advice"; "no reasonable explanation
for his decision" [syn: healthy, intelligent, levelheaded]
3: in good condition; free from defect or damage or decay; "a
sound timber"; "the wall is sound"; "a sound foundation"
[ant: unsound]
4: (of film) having spoken dialogue; "early talking pictures
were known as `talkies'" [syn: talking, sound]
[ant: silent]
5: in excellent physical condition; "good teeth"; "I still have
one good leg"; "a sound mind in a sound body" [syn: good]
6: reflects weight of sound argument or evidence; "a sound
argument" [syn: reasoned, well-grounded]
7: having legal efficacy or force; "a sound title to the
property" [syn: legal]
8: free from moral defect; "a man of sound character"
9: (of sleep) deep and complete; "a heavy sleep"; "fell into a
profound sleep"; "a sound sleeper"; "deep wakeless sleep"
[syn: heavy, profound, wakeless]
10: thorough; "a sound thrashing"
n 1: the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause;
"the sound of rain on the roof"; "the beautiful sound of
music" [ant: silence]
2: the subjective sensation of hearing something; "he strained
to hear the faint sounds" [syn: auditory sensation]
3: mechanical vibrations transmitted by an elastic medium;
"falling trees make a sound in the forest even when no one
is there to hear them"
4: the sudden occurrence of an audible event; "the sound
awakened them"
5: the audible part of a transmitted signal; "they always raise
the audio for commercials" [syn: audio]
6: (linguistics) an individual sound unit of speech without
concern as to whether or not it is a phoneme of some
language [syn: phone, speech sound]
7: a large ocean inlet or deep bay; "the main body of the sound
ran parallel to the coast"
8: a relatively narrow body of water linking two larger bodies;
"the ship went aground in the channel" [syn: channel]
adv : deeply or completely; "slept soundly through the storm"; "is
sound asleep" [syn: soundly]
v 1: appear in a certain way; "This sounds interesting"
2: make a certain noise or sound; "She went `Mmmmm'"; "The gun
went `bang'" [syn: go]
3: give off a certain sound or sounds: "This record sounds
scratchy"
4: announce by means of a sound; "sound the alarm"
5: utter with vibrating vocal chords [syn: voice, vocalize,
vocalise] [ant: devoice]
6: cause to sound; "sound the bell"
7: measure depths with a sounding line, as of a body of water
[syn: fathom]
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Sound \Sound\, n. [AS. sund a swimming, akin to E. swim. See Swim.] The air bladder of a fish; as, cod sounds are an esteemed article of food.
Sound \Sound\, n. (Zo["o]l.) A cuttlefish. [Obs.] --Ainsworth.
Sound \Sound\, a. [Compar. Sounder; superl. Soundest.] [OE. sound, AS. sund; akin to D. gezond, G. gesund, OHG. gisunt, Dan. & Sw. sund, and perhaps to L. sanus. Cf. Sane.] 1. Whole; unbroken; unharmed; free from flaw, defect, or decay; perfect of the kind; as, sound timber; sound fruit; a sound tooth; a sound ship. 2. Healthy; not diseased; not being in a morbid state; -- said of body or mind; as, a sound body; a sound constitution; a sound understanding. 3. Firm; strong; safe. The brasswork here, how rich it is in beams, And how, besides, it makes the whole house sound. --Chapman. 4. Free from error; correct; right; honest; true; faithful; orthodox; -- said of persons; as, a sound lawyer; a sound thinker. Do not I know you a favorer Of this new seat? Ye are nor sound. --Shak. 5. Founded in truth or right; supported by justice; not to be overthrown on refuted; not fallacious; as, sound argument or reasoning; a sound objection; sound doctrine; sound principles. Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me. --2 Tim. i. 13. 6. heavy; laid on with force; as, a sound beating. 7. Undisturbed; deep; profound; as, sound sleep. 8. Founded in law; legal; valid; not defective; as, a sound title to land. Note: Sound is sometimes used in the formation of self-explaining compounds; as, sound-headed, sound-hearted, sound-timbered, etc. Sound currency (Com.), a currency whose actual value is the same as its nominal value; a currency which does not deteriorate or depreciate or fluctuate in comparision with the standard of values.
Sound \Sound\, v. i.
To ascertain the depth of water with a sounding line or other
device.
I sound as a shipman soundeth in the sea with his
plummet to know the depth of sea. --Palsgrave.
Sound \Sound\, adv.
Soundly.
So sound he slept that naught might him awake.
--Spenser.
Sound \Sound\, n. [AS. sund a narrow sea or strait; akin to Icel., Sw., Dan. & G. sund, probably so named because it could be swum across. See Swim.] (Geog.) A narrow passage of water, or a strait between the mainland and an island; also, a strait connecting two seas, or connecting a sea or lake with the ocean; as, the Sound between the Baltic and the german Ocean; Long Island Sound. The Sound of Denmark, where ships pay toll. --Camden. Sound dues, tolls formerly imposed by Denmark on vessels passing through the Baltic Sound.
Sound \Sound\, n. [F. sonde. See Sound to fathom.] (Med.) Any elongated instrument or probe, usually metallic, by which cavities of the body are sounded or explored, especially the bladder for stone, or the urethra for a stricture.
Sound \Sound\, n. [OE. soun, OF. son, sun, F. son, fr. L. sonus akin to Skr. svana sound, svan to sound, and perh. to E. swan. Cf. Assonant, Consonant, Person, Sonata, Sonnet, Sonorous, Swan.] 1. The peceived object occasioned by the impulse or vibration of a material substance affecting the ear; a sensation or perception of the mind received through the ear, and produced by the impulse or vibration of the air or other medium with which the ear is in contact; the effect of an impression made on the organs of hearing by an impulse or vibration of the air caused by a collision of bodies, or by other means; noise; report; as, the sound of a drum; the sound of the human voice; a horrid sound; a charming sound; a sharp, high, or shrill sound. The warlike sound Of trumpets loud and clarions. --Milton. 2. The occasion of sound; the impulse or vibration which would occasion sound to a percipient if present with unimpaired; hence, the theory of vibrations in elastic media such cause sound; as, a treatise on sound. Note: In this sense, sounds are spoken of as audible and inaudible. 3. Noise without signification; empty noise; noise and nothing else. Sense and not sound . . . must be the principle. --Locke. Sound boarding, boards for holding pugging, placed in partitions of under floors in order to deaden sounds. Sound bow, in a series of transverse sections of a bell, that segment against which the clapper strikes, being the part which is most efficacious in producing the sound. See Illust. of Bell. Sound post. (Mus.) See Sounding post, under Sounding.
Sound \Sound\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Sounded; p. pr. & vb. n. Sounding.] [F. sonder; cf. AS. sundgyrd a sounding rod, sundline a sounding line (see Sound a narrow passage of water).] 1. To measure the depth of; to fathom; especially, to ascertain the depth of by means of a line and plummet. 2. Fig.: To ascertain, or try to ascertain, the thoughts, motives, and purposes of (a person); to examine; to try; to test; to probe. I was in jest, And by that offer meant to sound your breast. --Dryden. I've sounded my Numidians man by man. --Addison. 3. (Med.) To explore, as the bladder or urethra, with a sound; to examine with a sound; also, to examine by auscultation or percussion; as, to sound a patient.
Sound \Sound\, v. i. [OE. sounen, sownen, OF. soner, suner, F.
sonner, from L. sonare. See Sound a noise.]
1. To make a noise; to utter a voice; to make an impulse of
the air that shall strike the organs of hearing with a
perceptible effect. ``And first taught speaking trumpets
how to sound.'' --Dryden.
How silver-sweet sound lovers' tongues! --Shak.
2. To be conveyed in sound; to be spread or published; to
convey intelligence by sound.
From you sounded out the word of the Lord. --1
Thess. i. 8.
3. To make or convey a certain impression, or to have a
certain import, when heard; hence, to seem; to appear; as,
this reproof sounds harsh; the story sounds like an
invention.
Good sir, why do you start, and seem to fear Things
that do sound so fair? --Shak.
To sound in or into, to tend to; to partake of the nature
of; to be consonant with. [Obs., except in the phrase To
sound in damages, below.]
Soun[d]ing in moral virtue was his speech.
--Chaucer.
To sound in damages (Law), to have the essential quality of
damages. This is said of an action brought, not for the
recovery of a specific thing, as replevin, etc., but for
damages only, as trespass, and the like.
Sound \Sound\, v. t.
1. To causse to make a noise; to play on; as, to sound a
trumpet or a horn.
A bagpipe well could he play and soun[d]. --Chaucer.
2. To cause to exit as a sound; as, to sound a note with the
voice, or on an instrument.
3. To order, direct, indicate, or proclain by a sound, or
sounds; to give a signal for by a certain sound; as, to
sound a retreat; to sound a parley.
The clock sounded the hour of noon. --G. H. Lewes.
4. To celebrate or honor by sounds; to cause to be reported;
to publish or proclaim; as, to sound the praises of fame
of a great man or a great exploit.
5. To examine the condition of (anything) by causing the same
to emit sounds and noting their character; as, to sound a
piece of timber; to sound a vase; to sound the lungs of a
patient.
6. To signify; to import; to denote. [Obs.] --Milton.
Soun[d]ing alway the increase of his winning.
--Chaucer.
Source: The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (2003-OCT-10)
sound 1. audio. 2. <logic> An inference system A is sound with respect to another system B if A can only reach conclusions which are true in B. A type inference system is considered sound with respect to a semantics if the type inferred for an expression is the same as the type inferred for the meaning of that expression under the semantics. The dual to soundness is completeness. (1995-03-01)
