singingn.

/ˈsɪŋɪŋ/

Forms: Also Middle English–1500s syngyng(e, Middle English cyngynge, etc.

Etymology: < sing v.¹ + -ing suffix¹.

a. The action of the verb; chanting; also, matter suitable for singing.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > singing > [noun]

songeOE

singing1377

cantation1623

vocalism1821

vocalization1822

1377 W. Langland Piers Plowman B. xi. 145 I [was] saued, as ȝe may se, with-oute syngyng of masses.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 20587 Omang þat singing and þat gleu Our leuedi hir sun ihesu knew.

c1400 Rule St. Benet 1162 In ayn oþer plase sais he Þat angels sal our synging se.

c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 78 Cyngynge of songe, cantus.

c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 78 Cyngynge of masse, celebracio.

?1459 M. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 257 Sche seyd that þere wer[e] non dysgysynggys, ner[e] harpyng ner[e] lvtyng ner[e] syngyn.

1535 Bible (Coverdale) 1 Chron. vii. B They mynistred before the habitacion of the Tabernacle of witnes w^t synginge.

1579 E. Spenser Shepheardes Cal. May 21 With singing, and shouting, and iolly chere.

1611 Bible (King James) Song of Sol. ii. 12 The time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.

1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. iii. 90 They are naturally inclined to singing.

1700 J. Tyrrell Gen. Hist. Eng. II. 763 Yet was he received by the Clergy with a Solemn Procession and Singing.

1772 J. Wesley Jrnl. 21 Apr. Every one stood up at the singing.

1817 P. B. Shelley Fragm.: To one Singing 2 Upon the liquid waves of thy sweet singing.

1863 W. C. Baldwin Afr. Hunting 72 The horrid noise which the Kaffirs made, and call singing.

1896 T. Hardy Under Greenwood Tree (rev. ed.) Pref. p. vii Some of these compositions which now lie before me..are good singing still.

b. With a and plural. An instance of this. Now North American (chiefly Southern), a gathering joined for collective singing, esp. at a church; a hearty sing-song.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > singing > [noun] > instance of

songeOE

singingc1374

sing1850

society > faith > worship > church music > hymn > [noun] > act of singing > gathering for

singing1860

society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > a performance > [noun] > sing-song

sing-song1769

sing1850

singing1860

sing-in1968

sing-along1973

c1374 G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde iii. 1716 In blisse, and in syngynges, This Troylus gan all his lyf to lede.

c1450 Jacob's Well (1900) 164 Leccherous maners, as kyssynges, felynges, dern syngynges.

1563 J. Foxe Actes & Monuments 1313/2 Neither their singings nor their sayings shall bryng vs out of hel.

1591 E. Spenser Prosopopoia in Complaints 454 Their Diriges, their Trentals, and their shrifts, Their memories, their singings, and their gifts.

1661 Grand Deb. Rev. & Alteration Bk. Common Prayer 80 They use not the same prayers, singings or readings.

1860 O. L. Jackson Colonel's Diary (1922) 17 I was at a singing at Woodward Church.

1934 C. Carmer Stars fell on Alabama ii. ii. 49 Ain't seen him since the singin' down at Samanthy.

1949 B. A. Botkin Treasury Southern Folklore i. iv. 93 All through the South, of course, the church is an important social and cultural force, its sociability running the gamut of church-going..bush-arbor revivals, all-day singings with dinner on the grounds, church suppers, singing schools, [etc.].

1962 E. Lucia Klondike Kate viii. 172 Families got together for ‘singings’ around the parlor piano and to play games.

1975 Budget (Sugarcreek, Ohio) 20 Mar. 3/5 They all had supper at the Lehman home and a singing was held later in the evening.

c. The action of turning informer or laying information against someone. Cf. sing v.¹ 4d. Criminals' slang.

ΘΚΠ

society > communication > information > informing on or against > [noun]

wrayingc1000

information1387

promotion?1533

talebearing1571

delation1578

sycophancy1622

peachery1654

blowing the gap1821

nosing1827

peaching1859

rounding1862

squeal1872

scream1915

singing1937

snouting1937

dobbing1968

whistle-blowing1971

1937 Sat. Evening Post 18 Dec. 85/1 One actually preferred a three-year penitentiary term to singing.

1940 Daily Progress (Charlottesville, Va.) 21 Mar. 3 (heading) ‘Singing’ at murder syndicate's hunting ground.

1973 Times 12 Apr. 7/4 The terrified ‘singing’ of the Sicilian ‘Valachi’ to delighted magistrates in Palermo has landed 36 Mafia suspects in jail.

a. The emission of a clear musical note by fermenting or heated liquids.

ΘΚΠ

the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > resonance or sonority > other resonant sounds > [noun] > of fermenting or heated liquid

singingc1460

c1460 J. Russell Bk. Nurture 113 Ȝiff þe wyne reboyle, þow shalle know by hys syngynge.

1854 A. E. Baker Gloss. Northants. Words II. 235 The sound made by damp wood when burning is also called singing.

b. Telephony. A continuous self-excited oscillation of audible frequency in a telephone circuit, normally resulting from excessive positive feedback.

ΘΚΠ

society > communication > telecommunication > telegraphy or telephony > telephony > [noun] > signals or tones > interference

side tone1893

singing1923

babble1930

1923 T. E. Herbert Telephony xxvi. 829 If two repeaters are in circuit, spaced so closely that the line loss between them is less than the gain given by each ‘singing’ or ‘howling’ will persist continuously.

1962 C. F. Boyce Open-wire Carrier Telephone Transmission xi. 231 Singing affects not only the channel which is unstable but may also cause crosstalk into another system or overloading of line amplifiers.

1975 R. L. Freeman Telecommunication Transmission Handbk. vi. 48 To control singing all four-wire paths must have some loss.

3. A sound of a musical character having its origin in the ears or head.

ΘΚΠ

the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > sounds heard in body > [noun] > ringing, etc., in the ears

ringinga1398

tinklinga1398

sibilusc1400

sounding1600

singing1605

bombus1753

tympanophony1899

zinging1921

1605 G. Chapman Al Fooles v. i I'll swear I had A singing in my head a whole week after.

1609 W. B. tr. Philosophers Banquet i. xxx. f. 42^v The iuice..allayes the singing in the eares.

1656 J. Harrington Common-wealth of Oceana 194 I have a singing in my head like that of a Cart wheel.

1768 Philos. Trans. 1767 (Royal Soc.) 57 70 The giddiness in my head, singing in my ears,..were now considerably abated.

1889 Jrnl. Anthropol. Inst. 19 119 Singings in the ear, gurglings in the throat.

4. Of places used for singing in, as singing-gallery, singing-house, singing loft, singing-pew, singing-place, singing-room, singing-seat, singing theatre.

ΚΠ

c1660 J. Evelyn Diary anno 1644 (1955) II. 151 At the end of it, is a Cupola or singing theater.

1688 G. Miege Great French Dict. i. sig. Ii2^v/1 Jubé,..a singing Place.

1752 Philos. Trans. 1749–50 (Royal Soc.) 46 708 The Reading-Desk stands just by the Singing-Pew.

1772 Philos. Trans. 1771 (Royal Soc.) 61 74 The lightning entered..through two places in the roof, one near the singing loft.

1774 in Essex Inst. Hist. Coll. (1884) XXI. 271 Voted Liberty to beuld a singing Seat in the front of the Gallearry Pues.

c1820 S. Rogers Como in Italy (1839) 211 That shady nook, a singing place for birds.

1842 F. Witts Diary 22 Oct. (1978) 167 The remains were to be deposited at the west end of Upton St. Leonards church, under the singing gallery, near the font.

1849 W. M. Thackeray Pendennis (1850) I. xx. 189 The theatres and singing-houses which these roaring young blades frequented.

1851 J. W. Hudson Hist. Adult Educ. 157 Singing-rooms are numerous, prosperous and constantly well-attended.

1864 J. G. Whittier Wreck of Rivermouth 109 In the singing-seats young eyes were dim.

1883 C. C. Perkins Hist. Handbk. Ital. Sculpt. 139 A singing-gallery (cantoria) in the Cathedral.

1902 A. Bennett Anna of Five Towns ii. 34 Mynors..should have been in his place in the ‘orchestra’ (or, as some term it, the ‘singing-seat’) of the [Methodist] chapel.

1976 S. Wales Echo 27 Nov. 12/6 (advt.) Sing along with Mike and Charles at the newly decorated singing-room upstairs.

Compounds

C1. General attributive.

singing commercial n.

ΚΠ

1948 ‘B. Rose’ Wine, Women & Words 11 I wrote the first singing commercial.

1955 New Yorker 23 Apr. 74/1 I approached Mr. Chayefsky's film with no great hope that the thing would prove to be much more interesting than a singing commercial.

singing face n.

ΚΠ

1845 C. Dickens Cricket on Hearth ii. 66 He hadn't what is generally termed a singing face.

singing gear n.

ΚΠ

1530 in F. Collins Wills & Admin. Knaresborough Court Rolls (1902) I. 26 That he shall have his tytle and singynge geyr boughte at the coste of my sayd wyeffe.

singing-master n.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > music > study or science of music > music scholar > [noun] > teacher

music master1623

singing-master1711

music mistress1814

répétiteur1837

1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 112. ¶2 He..employed an itinerant Singing-Master..to instruct them rightly in the Tunes of the Psalms.

1754 N.Y. Mercury 11 Mar. 3/2 William Tuckey, Singing-Master, Desires to inform all lovers of Psalmody, that..all persons may be taught by him on very reasonable terms.

1789 Boston Town Rec. X. 190 Kimball John, singing-master.

1846 S. F. Smith Theatr. Apprenticeship 48 Excuse me if I'm mistaken, but are you or are you not our singing-master?

1872 E. Eggleston End of World x. 71 The singing-master, Mr. Humphreys, went to singing-school and church with Julia.

1891 Harper's Mag. Oct. 813/1 The precentor, or singing-master, as he was called, was a tall young man in a black suit with white ruffles.

1928 W. B. Yeats Tower 2 And to be the singing masters of my soul.

1976 J. Drummond Funeral Urn xvii. 89 He was planning to make a concert singer of her. He'd engaged a singing-master—ostensibly to train the Amber choir, but in fact for Bess.

singing matter n.

ΚΠ

1817 W. Scott Rob Roy III. x. 271 If there is any truth in your news, is it a singing matter, you scoundrel?

singing robes n.

ΚΠ

1841 T. De Quincey Homer & Homeridae in Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Nov. 631/1 When his singing robes were on..the rhapsodos held a stick in his right hand.

singing-school n.

ΚΠ

1736 R. Ainsworth Thes. Linguæ Latinæ I. (at cited word) A singing school, ludus musicus.

1779 E. Parkman Diary 86 Mr. Badcock keeps a singing-school at Mr. Barn. Newtons.

1832 J. P. Kennedy Swallow Barn II. iii. 55 Like the pupils of a singing-school practising the elements of psalmody.

1838 G. F. Graham Ess. Theory & Pract. Musical Composition Introd. p. x In the sixth century Pope Gregory I established a singing-school at Rome.

1848 in D. Drake Pioneer Life Kentucky viii. 188 Singing-schools were likewise held at the same place.

1863 B. Taylor Hannah Thurston iv. 48 A melody which he had learned at the Singing-school.

1886 Leslie's Pop. Monthly Feb. 239/2 That night Susy went to singing-school.

1929 E. W. Howe Plain People 23 There was so much indignation that thereafter the occasional spelling and singing schools were given up.

singing skill n.

ΚΠ

c1600 F. Davison in E. Farr Sel. Poetry Reign Elizabeth (1845) II. 331 Let my tongue lose singing skill.

singing-voice n.

ΚΠ

1880 S. Lanier Sci. Eng. Verse i. 28 These are the limits for the human singing-voice.

C2.

singing-bone n. dialect the funny-bone.

ΘΚΠ

the world > life > the body > structural parts > bone or bones > bones of arm or leg > bones of arm > [noun] > bone of elbow

olecranon1578

rotula1766

funny bone1826

singing-bone1854

1854 A. E. Baker Gloss. Northants. Words II. 235 Singing-bone, the sharp bone at the edge of the elbow.

singing book n. a book to sing from.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > music > written or printed music > [noun] > music book > songbook

songbook1473

singing book1580

songster1739

partbook1864

1580 Allen in J. Gillow Haydock Papers (1888) 17 To employ the same summe..upon a payre of organs, one table, and certayne singing bookes.

1607 T. Tomkis Lingua i. ix When shall wee heare a new set of singing-books, or th' viols, or the consort of Instruments.

1793 in Essex Inst. Hist. Coll. (1885) XXII. 148 Voted to obtain 6 Psalm Books and 6 Singing Books for the use of the Parish.

1872 H. B. Stowe Oldtown Fireside Stories 130 They tore out all the leaves of the hymn-books, and the singin'-books besides.

singing-e'en n. Scottish New Year's eve.

ΘΚΠ

the world > time > period > year > [noun] > specific days of the year > New-year's day or eve

year's dayOE

New Year's Dayc1175

hogmanay1681

singing-e'en1806

Sylvester1838

New Year's Eve1864

1806 A. Douglas Poems 24 Singin'-e'en she's owre aft seen, She's shakin' hands wi' fifty.

singing game n. a traditional children's game in which singing accompanies associated actions.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > children's game > other children's games > [noun] > singing game

song game1874

singing game1880

1880 Folk-lore Rec. 3 ii. 169 The following ‘Singing Games’ are still played and sung by the children of Bocking, in Essex..I. Mary's gone a-milking..II. Thread the Tailor's needle..III. Nuts in May [etc.].

1905 G. Ade Let. 7 Nov. (1973) 33 One or two of the old-fashioned singing games which went as well in the Sho-Gun.

1975 B. Meyrick Behind Light xiv. 183 Playing the singing games ‘Jenny is a-weeping’, ‘In and out the stalky bluebells’.

singing gift n. Obsolete (see quot.).

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > behaviour > reciprocal treatment or return of an action > reward or a reward > [noun] > reward for singing or a song

singing giftc1440

c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 456/2 Syngynge ȝyfte, or reward for syngynge, syparium.

† singing loaf n. Obsolete = singing bread n.

ΘΚΠ

society > faith > artefacts > consumables > eucharistic elements > bread > [noun]

fleshc1000

ofleteOE

mannaa1200

breada1225

bread of lifea1300

host1303

bodya1325

obleya1325

God's bodya1387

cakec1390

singing bread1432

bread of wheata1450

singing loaf1530

God's bread1535

bread god?1548

round robin?1548

holy bread1552

singing cake1553

Jack-in-the-box1554

wafer-cake?1554

wafer1559

wafer-bread1565

breaden god1570

mass cake1579

wafer-god1623

hostel1624

maker1635

hostie1641

oblata1721

altar bread1839

prosphora1874

1530 W. Tyndale Pract. Prelates sig. Fviij A great deale of flower wolde not make so manye hostes as they call them or synginge loues.

1546 T. Phaer Bk. Children (1553) T viij b Make a fewe pylles of aloes,..wynde them in a piece of a singing lofe,..and let them be swalowed.

Categories »

singing-muscle n. one of the syringeal muscles of a singing-bird ( Cent. Dict.).

singing point n. Telephony the maximum gain that a telephone repeater can have without being liable to self-oscillation in the circuit.

ΘΚΠ

society > communication > telecommunication > telegraphy or telephony > telephony > [noun] > maximum usable gain

singing point1924

1924 K. S. Johnson Transmission Circuits Teleph. Communication xiv. 166 The singing point or the limiting condition beyond which satisfactory operation of the repeater cannot be maintained.

1934 Post Office Electr. Engineers Jrnl. 27 231/2 The vertical scale gives the singing point of a repeater in decibels.

† singing psalms n. Obsolete the metrical version of the psalms used for singing in church.

ΘΚΠ

society > faith > worship > church music > psalm > kinds of psalm > metrical > [noun] > collectively

singing psalms1679

1679 J. Bunyan Fear of God in Wks. (1852) I. 473 I will set it before thee both as it is in the reading and in the singing psalms.

1710 W. Beveridge Wks. (1846) VIII. 615 Great endeavours..have been made..to cast out the Old, and bring in a New Version of the Singing-Psalms.

singing-seat n. U.S. a choir seat.

ΚΠ

1847 Knickerbocker Mag. 30 527 I..have obtained some notoriety in our parish choir for playing the bass-viol and leading the singers in the First Congregational singing-seats.

1887 M. E. Wilkins Humble Romance 60 David Ayres, in his place in the second row of the singing seats, watched them soberly.

† singing wine n. Obsolete ? wine used in celebrating mass.

ΘΚΠ

society > faith > artefacts > consumables > eucharistic elements > wine > [noun]

winec1005

bloodOE

blood of Christc1384

singing wine1558

cup1597

sacrament-wine1698

1558 Fraternity Holy Ghost, Basingstoke (1882) 9 Item payed for singinge wyne, ij d.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1911; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

singingadj.

Brit.

/ˈsɪŋɪŋ/, U.S.

/ˈsɪŋɪŋ/

Forms: Also Middle English syngynge.

Origin: Formed within English, by derivation. Etymon: -ing suffix².

Etymology: -ing suffix².

I. That sings.

a. That sings; giving forth song.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > singing > [adjective]

singingc1340

caroling1867

the world > animals > birds > [adjective] > making a sound

merryOE

warbling1549

singing1798

rolling1839

c1340 Nominale (Skeat) 128 Syngynge man silden weputh.

c1595 Countess of Pembroke Psalme lxvi. 12 in Coll. Wks. (1998) II. 75 All earth I say, and all earth dwellers, Be of his worth the singing tellers.

1600 W. Shakespeare Henry V i. ii. 198 The singing masons building roofes of gold.

1779 Mirror No. 24 We have the whistling plow~man, the singing milk-maid.

1798 S. T. Coleridge Fears in Solitude 1 O'er stiller place No singing sky-lark ever pois'd himself.

1820 P. B. Shelley Prometheus Unbound iv. i. 149 The bright visions, Wherein the singing spirits rode and shone.

1882 J. Parker Apostolic Life I. 12 Like a singing angel newly sent from the glad heavens.

b. In names of birds, etc.

ΚΠ

1864–5 J. G. Wood Homes without Hands (1868) xii. 218 A most beautiful pensile nest is made by the Singing Honey-Eater (Ptilotus sonorus).

1884 G. B. Goode in G. B. Goode et al. Fisheries U.S.: Sect. I 253 The Batrachidæ are represented on the Pacific coast by the ‘Singing-fish’, or ‘Toad-fish’, Porichthys porosissimus.

2. Specially or professionally employed in singing; engaged or hired to sing:

a. singing man n. a man engaged to sing in an ecclesiastical choir.

ΘΚΠ

society > faith > church government > laity > lay functionaries > chorister > [noun]

songereOE

childOE

clergionc1325

choristerc1360

chanterc1384

quirera1425

choirman1488

singing man1527

clerk1549

chorista1552

songman1599

singing boy1666

sing-man1691

white boy1691

white man1691

choirist1773

secular1786

chorister-boy1817

choirboy1843

1527–8 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 346 Paide to a singing-man of Sent Anthis..for keping of our lady mas.

1597 T. Morley Plaine & Easie Introd. Musicke 156 To haue plaide it on the Organes with a quier of singing men.

1602 T. Campion Obseruations Art Eng. Poesie sig. A7^v Sir Thomas Moore..makes two sundry Epitaphs vpon the death of a singing man at Westminster.

1655 T. Fuller Church-hist. Brit. xi. 179 He heavily aggravated the debauchednesse of Singingmen.

1725 Portland Papers VI. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) 100 Mr. Bierly..married a daughter of Dan. Williams the Singing-man of Westminster.

1786 T. Busby Compl. Dict. Music Singing-Man, the appellation formerly given by the common people to the gentlemen of cathedral choirs.

1789 C. Burney Gen. Hist. Music III. 22 He procured a singing-man's place in the cathedral of Norwich.

1905 E. Candler Unveiling of Lhasa xiv. 269 The Abbot begins the chant, and the monks, facing each other like singing-men in a choir, repeat the litany.

figurative.1594 T. Nashe Vnfortunate Traveller sig. K As many sortes of shrill breasted birdes, as the Summer hath allowed for singing men in her siluane chapels.

b. Similarly singing boy, singing clerk. Also, in other than ecclesiastical use, singing girl, singing woman.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > music > musician > singer > [noun] > female

singeressa1382

chantressc1390

singing girl1535

songstress1684

music-girl1734

cantatrice1803

chanteuse1823

canary1862

singstress1873

chantoosie1940

thrush1940

warbler1946

society > faith > church government > laity > lay functionaries > chorister > [noun]

songereOE

childOE

clergionc1325

choristerc1360

chanterc1384

quirera1425

choirman1488

singing man1527

clerk1549

chorista1552

songman1599

singing boy1666

sing-man1691

white boy1691

white man1691

choirist1773

secular1786

chorister-boy1817

choirboy1843

1535 Bible (Coverdale) 2 Chron. xxxv. 25 All the synginge men and wemen [1611 the singing women].

1548 T. Cooper Bibliotheca Eliotæ (rev. ed.) Cantrix,..a syngyng woman.

1666 S. Pepys Diary 26 Feb. (1972) VII. 58 And hither comes cushions to us, and a young singing-boy to bring us a copy of the Anthemne to be sung.

1682 N. O. tr. N. Boileau-Despréaux Lutrin iv. 25 Let Singing-boyes Whose Pension's pay for 't, do those Drudgeries!

1709 R. Steele Tatler No. 41 Mr. John Taplash..desires your Vote for Singing-Clerk of this Parish.

1734 A. Pope Sober Advice from Horace 5 ‘With Wives I never sin.’ But Singing-Girls and Mimicks draw him in.

1820 T. Mitchell in tr. Aristophanes Comedies I. 302 (note) The dicast..enters with a torch in one hand, and leads a singing-girl in the other.

1880 R. Browning Muléykeh 59 For a couple of singing-girls his robe has he torn in two.

3. singing bird n. a bird that sings; a songster. Usually applied to cage-birds; the plural is also sometimes used as a rendering of oscines n. 2.

ΘΚΠ

the world > animals > birds > sound or bird defined by > [noun] > bird that makes sound

singing bird1565

songbird1573

whistler1590

singer1626

songster1656

songstress1684

poeta1748

squeaker1808

twitterer1815

night singer1816

song-fowl1877

1565 T. Cooper Thesaurus Cantrices aues, syngyng byrdes.

1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II i. iii. 256 + 21 Suppose the singing birds musitions.

1626 F. Bacon Sylua Syluarum §239 We see also, that Cock-birds, among Singing-birds, are ever the better singers.

1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 5. ¶7 The next time it is Acted, the Singing Birds will be Personated by Tom-Tits.

1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth V. 339 Of the Canary-bird, and other hard billed Singing-birds.

1817 W. Scott Rob Roy I. v. 104 They are like imprisoned singing-birds.

1841 T. R. Jones Gen. Outl. Animal Kingdom xxix. 604 It is owing to the capacity of the air-cells that the Singing Birds are enabled to prolong their notes.

in extended use.1848 C. Kingsley Saint's Trag. iii. iv. 176 Mealy-mouthed inquisitors, and shaven singing-birds.

4. That makes or gives out a sound of a musical character (cf. sing v.¹ 6).

ΘΚΠ

the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > resonance or sonority > [adjective]

loudc897

shillOE

brightOE

shillinga1225

soundingc1374

ringingc1400

sonore?c1400

resoundingc1425

sonousc1429

resoundable?c1500

soundish1530

high-sounding1560

singing1565

resonant1572

trolling1581

rumbelow1582

sonorous1611

canorous1646

remugient1660

retentive1728

fullish1770

pealing1794

resonating1845

plangent1858

resonatory1880

timbrous1929

1565 T. Cooper Thesaurus Sagitta stridens, a syngyng arow.

1629 F. Quarles Argalus & Parthenia iii. 122 His winged messenger..did hide His singing feathers, in his wounded side.

1642 T. Fuller Holy State v. xvi. 423 Malice, which..like hollow singing bullets, flies but halfway to the mark.

1716 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad II. v. 214 Thro' the thick Storm of singing Spears he flies.

1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Iliad in Iliad & Odyssey I. xviii. 432 The water in the singing brass Simmer'd.

1820 P. B. Shelley Prometheus Unbound iv. i. 135 Sounds, Sweet as a singing rain of silver dew.

1855 H. W. Longfellow Hiawatha Introd. 5 Beyond them..Stood the groves of singing pine-trees.

II. Of the nature of singing; song-like.

5. Of the nature of singing; having the musical qualities of song.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > music > type of music > vocal music > [adjective] > having quality of

singinga1400

songy1848

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 11244 Aungels..brouȝt word with syngynge steuen.

a1586 Sir P. Sidney tr. Psalmes David (1823) xxxiii. ii O now accord Violls with singing voice.

c1595 Countess of Pembroke Psalme lxviii. 86 in Coll. Wks. (1998) II. 81 On the lord your singing gladnes spend.

1697 C. Leslie Snake in Grass (ed. 2) 115 A She-Preacher..with a Trembling Voice, and Singing Tone.

1725 A. Ramsay Gentle Shepherd i. ii The water fa's, and makes a singand din.

1763 Ann. Reg. 1762 ii. 37 I have acquired by habit that singing tone of voice which is common in our mountains.

1860 J. Tyndall Glaciers of Alps ii. xvii. 317 The intervals between the louder reports being filled by a low singing noise.

Compounds

singing arc n. A direct current arc across which is connected a tuned circuit, causing the arc to oscillate and emit a sound at the frequency of the tuned circuit.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > physics > science of sound > vibration > [noun] > direct current arc

singing arc1903

the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electronics > electronic phenomena > [noun] > waveform > arc discharge producing short waves > direct current arc

singing arc1903

1903 Sci. Abstr. A. 6 30 The author suggests replacing the ordinary high-capacity condensers necessary to produce Duddell's ‘singing arc’ by the much less costly aluminium condenser.

1906 Electrician 21 Dec. 375/1 Limitations as to frequency..beset the use of the singing arc as a transformer of the direct mains current into uninterrupted high-frequency alternating current.

1913 Year-bk. Wireless Telegr. & Teleph. 399 Duddrell's discovery of the singing arc in 1900.

1950 S. G. Starling & A. J. Woodall Physics xxxvi. 874 The singing arc..where electrical and thermal factors are involved in the maintenance of oscillations.

singing (arc) lamp n. (see quot. 1883).

ΚΠ

1883 W. S. Gresley Gloss. Terms Coal Mining Singing Lamp, a safety lamp which, when placed in an atmosphere of explosive gas, gives out a peculiar sound or note.

1903 Work 2 May 203/1 A singing arc lamp, invented by a German named Simon, of Frankfort.

singing-buoy n. A buoy having something attached which gives out a singing sound.

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > buoys, marks, or lighthouses > [noun] > buoy > other types of buoy

can-buoy1626

mast-buoy1675

nun buoy1703

breakwater1769

under-buoy1793

light buoy1822

bell-buoy1838

spar-buoy1860

gas buoy1865

whistling buoy1880

puppy1890

singing-buoy1894

gas float1895

1894 Outing 24 460/2 A singing-buoy had been torn from its moorings.

singing coal n. (See quot. 1883).

ΘΚΠ

the world > the earth > minerals > mineral deposits > [noun] > stratum or bed > of coal > seam of specific coal

singing coal1855

jet seam1873

1855 J. Phillips Man. Geol. 193 Strata, including singeing [sic] coal.

1883 W. S. Gresley Gloss. Terms Coal Mining 223 Singing Coal, a bed of coal from which gas is ordinarily issuing from the partly-exposed face in the mine, producing a hissing sound.

singing glass n. (See quot. 1875).

ΘΚΠ

the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > resonance or sonority > [noun] > echo chamber or instrument

whispering-placea1661

singing glass1669

sound-board1766

sounding-board1766

whispering-gallery1812

reverberation chamber1925

echo room1933

echo chamber1937

1669 S. Pepys Diary 23 Feb. (1976) IX. 457 I had one or two singing-glasses made, which make an echo to the voice, the first that ever I saw.

1792 G. Galloway Poems 34 To see..Mr Cartwright's singing glasses.

1875 E. H. Knight Amer. Mech. Dict. III. 2187/1 Singing-glass, a thin, sonorous glass vessel, which yields an echo when vibrated by a sound.

singing hinny n. (Northern dialect). A kind of cake which emits a hissing sound while cooking on a girdle.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > food > dishes and prepared food > cake > [noun] > a cake > griddle cake

hot cake1683

griddle-cake1783

flannel-cake1792

slapjack1805

knead-cake1810

singing hinny1825

Welsh cake1867

tough-cake1881

1825 J. T. Brockett Gloss. North Country Words Singin or Singing-hinny, a kneaded spice cake baked on the girdle; indispensable in a pitman's family.

1832 W. Stephenson Coll. Local Poems, Songs, &c. 27 Ma canny bairns come get your tea, I've made a singing hinny.

1855 J. R. Leifchild Cornwall: Mines & Miners 283 The Cornish cottage has no ‘singing hinnies’, or rich girdle cakes.

1863 E. C. Gaskell Sylvia's Lovers I. iv. 63 Neither cream nor finest wheaten flour was wanting for ‘turf-cakes’ and ‘singing-hinnies’.

singing sand n. Desert or beach sand that emits a singing, whistling, humming, or other continuous sound when disturbed.

ΘΚΠ

the world > the earth > structure of the earth > constituent materials > stone > stony material > [noun] > sand > types of

sea-sandc1220

black sand1536

gold sand1578

quicksand1641

iron sand1681

crag1735

Bude sand1808

musical sand1858

sounding sand1884

singing sand1897

squeaking sand1966

1884 Proc. 32nd Meeting Amer. Assoc. Advancem. Sci. 251 (heading) The singing beach of Manchester, Mass.]

1897 M. Kingsley Trav. W. Afr. 175 A patch of singing sand under my feet.

1930 J. R. Partington Text-bk. Inorg. Chem. 725 ‘Singing sand’, which emits a peculiar squeaking note when pressed, consists of rounded grains of nearly uniform size. It occurs..in various localities.

1941 R. A. Bagnold Physics of Blown Sand & Desert Dunes xvii. 251 I have found singing sand on the slip~faces of both seif and barchan dunes and of drifts formed under the shelter of cliffs.

1970 R. Johnston Black Camels viii. 133 The night-long background music of the dunes was silenced. They were through the singing sands.

singing tree n. a West Indian tree, the pods of which make a singing sound when stirred by the wind.

ΘΚΠ

the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > non-British trees or shrubs > South American and West Indian trees or shrubs > [noun] > unidentified, unspecified, or various

silver-wood1693

grapple-wood1750

brown-heart1796

singing tree1885

1885 A. Brassey In Trades 340 The flamboyant..is very abundant here [i.e. in the Bahamas]; as is also the ‘singing’ tree, which we first saw in Jamaica.

Draft additions December 2021

singing bowl n. a bowl-shaped musical instrument which produces a sustained note when a mallet is rotated around its outside rim, and which is typically used to accompany periods of meditation or chanting; frequently associated with Tibetan Buddhism and often in Tibetan singing bowl.Singing bowls are usually made of metal, or sometimes crystal. Water may be added to the bowls to allow different notes to be produced.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > music > musical instrument > other musical instruments > [noun] > others

coriunc1275

symphonyc1290

symphan1303

minstrelsyc1390

bougounc1400

clokarde?c1475

dulsacordisa1525

symphioun1578

sumphion?1590

clasher1621

orphion1658

polyphone1684

roundball1688

phonomime1834

orchestrion1838

sabbeka1844

bullroarer1848

creaker1855

melodikon1857

symphonia1864

organophone1880

magnetophone1883

Kaffir piano1897

jazzophone1926

mouth bow1932

wobbleboard1960

singing bowl1980

1980 Radio Times 11 Dec. 61/3 (title of radio programme) The singing bowls of Tibet.

1999 D. Fontana Learn to Meditate 49/1 You can sound a bell [or] a singing bowl..at the beginning and end of the session.

2009 All that Matters Fall 12/1 Experience the vibrational healing of the bronze gong and Tibetan singing bowls during this deep sound relaxation.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1911; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

单词	singing
释义	singingn. /ˈsɪŋɪŋ/ Forms: Also Middle English–1500s syngyng(e, Middle English cyngynge, etc. Etymology: < sing v.¹ + -ing suffix¹. 1. a. The action of the verb; chanting; also, matter suitable for singing. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > singing > [noun] songeOE singing1377 cantation1623 vocalism1821 vocalization1822 1377 W. Langland Piers Plowman B. xi. 145 I [was] saued, as ȝe may se, with-oute syngyng of masses. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 20587 Omang þat singing and þat gleu Our leuedi hir sun ihesu knew. c1400 Rule St. Benet 1162 In ayn oþer plase sais he Þat angels sal our synging se. c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 78 Cyngynge of songe, cantus. c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 78 Cyngynge of masse, celebracio. ?1459 M. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 257 Sche seyd that þere wer[e] non dysgysynggys, ner[e] harpyng ner[e] lvtyng ner[e] syngyn. 1535 Bible (Coverdale) 1 Chron. vii. B They mynistred before the habitacion of the Tabernacle of witnes w^t synginge. 1579 E. Spenser Shepheardes Cal. May 21 With singing, and shouting, and iolly chere. 1611 Bible (King James) Song of Sol. ii. 12 The time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land. View more context for this quotation 1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. iii. 90 They are naturally inclined to singing. 1700 J. Tyrrell Gen. Hist. Eng. II. 763 Yet was he received by the Clergy with a Solemn Procession and Singing. 1772 J. Wesley Jrnl. 21 Apr. Every one stood up at the singing. 1817 P. B. Shelley Fragm.: To one Singing 2 Upon the liquid waves of thy sweet singing. 1863 W. C. Baldwin Afr. Hunting 72 The horrid noise which the Kaffirs made, and call singing. 1896 T. Hardy Under Greenwood Tree (rev. ed.) Pref. p. vii Some of these compositions which now lie before me..are good singing still. b. With a and plural. An instance of this. Now North American (chiefly Southern), a gathering joined for collective singing, esp. at a church; a hearty sing-song. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > singing > [noun] > instance of songeOE singingc1374 sing1850 society > faith > worship > church music > hymn > [noun] > act of singing > gathering for singing1860 society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > a performance > [noun] > sing-song sing-song1769 sing1850 singing1860 sing-in1968 sing-along1973 c1374 G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde iii. 1716 In blisse, and in syngynges, This Troylus gan all his lyf to lede. c1450 Jacob's Well (1900) 164 Leccherous maners, as kyssynges, felynges, dern syngynges. 1563 J. Foxe Actes & Monuments 1313/2 Neither their singings nor their sayings shall bryng vs out of hel. 1591 E. Spenser Prosopopoia in Complaints 454 Their Diriges, their Trentals, and their shrifts, Their memories, their singings, and their gifts. 1661 Grand Deb. Rev. & Alteration Bk. Common Prayer 80 They use not the same prayers, singings or readings. 1860 O. L. Jackson Colonel's Diary (1922) 17 I was at a singing at Woodward Church. 1934 C. Carmer Stars fell on Alabama ii. ii. 49 Ain't seen him since the singin' down at Samanthy. 1949 B. A. Botkin Treasury Southern Folklore i. iv. 93 All through the South, of course, the church is an important social and cultural force, its sociability running the gamut of church-going..bush-arbor revivals, all-day singings with dinner on the grounds, church suppers, singing schools, [etc.]. 1962 E. Lucia Klondike Kate viii. 172 Families got together for ‘singings’ around the parlor piano and to play games. 1975 Budget (Sugarcreek, Ohio) 20 Mar. 3/5 They all had supper at the Lehman home and a singing was held later in the evening. c. The action of turning informer or laying information against someone. Cf. sing v.¹ 4d. Criminals' slang. ΘΚΠ society > communication > information > informing on or against > [noun] wrayingc1000 information1387 promotion?1533 talebearing1571 delation1578 sycophancy1622 peachery1654 blowing the gap1821 nosing1827 peaching1859 rounding1862 squeal1872 scream1915 singing1937 snouting1937 dobbing1968 whistle-blowing1971 1937 Sat. Evening Post 18 Dec. 85/1 One actually preferred a three-year penitentiary term to singing. 1940 Daily Progress (Charlottesville, Va.) 21 Mar. 3 (heading) ‘Singing’ at murder syndicate's hunting ground. 1973 Times 12 Apr. 7/4 The terrified ‘singing’ of the Sicilian ‘Valachi’ to delighted magistrates in Palermo has landed 36 Mafia suspects in jail. 2. a. The emission of a clear musical note by fermenting or heated liquids. ΘΚΠ the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > resonance or sonority > other resonant sounds > [noun] > of fermenting or heated liquid singingc1460 c1460 J. Russell Bk. Nurture 113 Ȝiff þe wyne reboyle, þow shalle know by hys syngynge. 1854 A. E. Baker Gloss. Northants. Words II. 235 The sound made by damp wood when burning is also called singing. b. Telephony. A continuous self-excited oscillation of audible frequency in a telephone circuit, normally resulting from excessive positive feedback. ΘΚΠ society > communication > telecommunication > telegraphy or telephony > telephony > [noun] > signals or tones > interference side tone1893 singing1923 babble1930 1923 T. E. Herbert Telephony xxvi. 829 If two repeaters are in circuit, spaced so closely that the line loss between them is less than the gain given by each ‘singing’ or ‘howling’ will persist continuously. 1962 C. F. Boyce Open-wire Carrier Telephone Transmission xi. 231 Singing affects not only the channel which is unstable but may also cause crosstalk into another system or overloading of line amplifiers. 1975 R. L. Freeman Telecommunication Transmission Handbk. vi. 48 To control singing all four-wire paths must have some loss. 3. A sound of a musical character having its origin in the ears or head. ΘΚΠ the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > sounds heard in body > [noun] > ringing, etc., in the ears ringinga1398 tinklinga1398 sibilusc1400 sounding1600 singing1605 bombus1753 tympanophony1899 zinging1921 1605 G. Chapman Al Fooles v. i I'll swear I had A singing in my head a whole week after. 1609 W. B. tr. Philosophers Banquet i. xxx. f. 42^v The iuice..allayes the singing in the eares. 1656 J. Harrington Common-wealth of Oceana 194 I have a singing in my head like that of a Cart wheel. 1768 Philos. Trans. 1767 (Royal Soc.) 57 70 The giddiness in my head, singing in my ears,..were now considerably abated. 1889 Jrnl. Anthropol. Inst. 19 119 Singings in the ear, gurglings in the throat. 4. Of places used for singing in, as singing-gallery, singing-house, singing loft, singing-pew, singing-place, singing-room, singing-seat, singing theatre. ΚΠ c1660 J. Evelyn Diary anno 1644 (1955) II. 151 At the end of it, is a Cupola or singing theater. 1688 G. Miege Great French Dict. i. sig. Ii2^v/1 Jubé,..a singing Place. 1752 Philos. Trans. 1749–50 (Royal Soc.) 46 708 The Reading-Desk stands just by the Singing-Pew. 1772 Philos. Trans. 1771 (Royal Soc.) 61 74 The lightning entered..through two places in the roof, one near the singing loft. 1774 in Essex Inst. Hist. Coll. (1884) XXI. 271 Voted Liberty to beuld a singing Seat in the front of the Gallearry Pues. c1820 S. Rogers Como in Italy (1839) 211 That shady nook, a singing place for birds. 1842 F. Witts Diary 22 Oct. (1978) 167 The remains were to be deposited at the west end of Upton St. Leonards church, under the singing gallery, near the font. 1849 W. M. Thackeray Pendennis (1850) I. xx. 189 The theatres and singing-houses which these roaring young blades frequented. 1851 J. W. Hudson Hist. Adult Educ. 157 Singing-rooms are numerous, prosperous and constantly well-attended. 1864 J. G. Whittier Wreck of Rivermouth 109 In the singing-seats young eyes were dim. 1883 C. C. Perkins Hist. Handbk. Ital. Sculpt. 139 A singing-gallery (cantoria) in the Cathedral. 1902 A. Bennett Anna of Five Towns ii. 34 Mynors..should have been in his place in the ‘orchestra’ (or, as some term it, the ‘singing-seat’) of the [Methodist] chapel. 1976 S. Wales Echo 27 Nov. 12/6 (advt.) Sing along with Mike and Charles at the newly decorated singing-room upstairs. Compounds C1. General attributive. singing commercial n. ΚΠ 1948 ‘B. Rose’ Wine, Women & Words 11 I wrote the first singing commercial. 1955 New Yorker 23 Apr. 74/1 I approached Mr. Chayefsky's film with no great hope that the thing would prove to be much more interesting than a singing commercial. singing face n. ΚΠ 1845 C. Dickens Cricket on Hearth ii. 66 He hadn't what is generally termed a singing face. singing gear n. ΚΠ 1530 in F. Collins Wills & Admin. Knaresborough Court Rolls (1902) I. 26 That he shall have his tytle and singynge geyr boughte at the coste of my sayd wyeffe. singing-master n. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > music > study or science of music > music scholar > [noun] > teacher music master1623 singing-master1711 music mistress1814 répétiteur1837 1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 112. ¶2 He..employed an itinerant Singing-Master..to instruct them rightly in the Tunes of the Psalms. 1754 N.Y. Mercury 11 Mar. 3/2 William Tuckey, Singing-Master, Desires to inform all lovers of Psalmody, that..all persons may be taught by him on very reasonable terms. 1789 Boston Town Rec. X. 190 Kimball John, singing-master. 1846 S. F. Smith Theatr. Apprenticeship 48 Excuse me if I'm mistaken, but are you or are you not our singing-master? 1872 E. Eggleston End of World x. 71 The singing-master, Mr. Humphreys, went to singing-school and church with Julia. 1891 Harper's Mag. Oct. 813/1 The precentor, or singing-master, as he was called, was a tall young man in a black suit with white ruffles. 1928 W. B. Yeats Tower 2 And to be the singing masters of my soul. 1976 J. Drummond Funeral Urn xvii. 89 He was planning to make a concert singer of her. He'd engaged a singing-master—ostensibly to train the Amber choir, but in fact for Bess. singing matter n. ΚΠ 1817 W. Scott Rob Roy III. x. 271 If there is any truth in your news, is it a singing matter, you scoundrel? singing robes n. ΚΠ 1841 T. De Quincey Homer & Homeridae in Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Nov. 631/1 When his singing robes were on..the rhapsodos held a stick in his right hand. singing-school n. ΚΠ 1736 R. Ainsworth Thes. Linguæ Latinæ I. (at cited word) A singing school, ludus musicus. 1779 E. Parkman Diary 86 Mr. Badcock keeps a singing-school at Mr. Barn. Newtons. 1832 J. P. Kennedy Swallow Barn II. iii. 55 Like the pupils of a singing-school practising the elements of psalmody. 1838 G. F. Graham Ess. Theory & Pract. Musical Composition Introd. p. x In the sixth century Pope Gregory I established a singing-school at Rome. 1848 in D. Drake Pioneer Life Kentucky viii. 188 Singing-schools were likewise held at the same place. 1863 B. Taylor Hannah Thurston iv. 48 A melody which he had learned at the Singing-school. 1886 Leslie's Pop. Monthly Feb. 239/2 That night Susy went to singing-school. 1929 E. W. Howe Plain People 23 There was so much indignation that thereafter the occasional spelling and singing schools were given up. singing skill n. ΚΠ c1600 F. Davison in E. Farr Sel. Poetry Reign Elizabeth (1845) II. 331 Let my tongue lose singing skill. singing-voice n. ΚΠ 1880 S. Lanier Sci. Eng. Verse i. 28 These are the limits for the human singing-voice. C2. singing-bone n. dialect the funny-bone. ΘΚΠ the world > life > the body > structural parts > bone or bones > bones of arm or leg > bones of arm > [noun] > bone of elbow olecranon1578 rotula1766 funny bone1826 singing-bone1854 1854 A. E. Baker Gloss. Northants. Words II. 235 Singing-bone, the sharp bone at the edge of the elbow. singing book n. a book to sing from. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > music > written or printed music > [noun] > music book > songbook songbook1473 singing book1580 songster1739 partbook1864 1580 Allen in J. Gillow Haydock Papers (1888) 17 To employ the same summe..upon a payre of organs, one table, and certayne singing bookes. 1607 T. Tomkis Lingua i. ix When shall wee heare a new set of singing-books, or th' viols, or the consort of Instruments. 1793 in Essex Inst. Hist. Coll. (1885) XXII. 148 Voted to obtain 6 Psalm Books and 6 Singing Books for the use of the Parish. 1872 H. B. Stowe Oldtown Fireside Stories 130 They tore out all the leaves of the hymn-books, and the singin'-books besides. singing-e'en n. Scottish New Year's eve. ΘΚΠ the world > time > period > year > [noun] > specific days of the year > New-year's day or eve year's dayOE New Year's Dayc1175 hogmanay1681 singing-e'en1806 Sylvester1838 New Year's Eve1864 1806 A. Douglas Poems 24 Singin'-e'en she's owre aft seen, She's shakin' hands wi' fifty. singing game n. a traditional children's game in which singing accompanies associated actions. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > children's game > other children's games > [noun] > singing game song game1874 singing game1880 1880 Folk-lore Rec. 3 ii. 169 The following ‘Singing Games’ are still played and sung by the children of Bocking, in Essex..I. Mary's gone a-milking..II. Thread the Tailor's needle..III. Nuts in May [etc.]. 1905 G. Ade Let. 7 Nov. (1973) 33 One or two of the old-fashioned singing games which went as well in the Sho-Gun. 1975 B. Meyrick Behind Light xiv. 183 Playing the singing games ‘Jenny is a-weeping’, ‘In and out the stalky bluebells’. singing gift n. Obsolete (see quot.). ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > behaviour > reciprocal treatment or return of an action > reward or a reward > [noun] > reward for singing or a song singing giftc1440 c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 456/2 Syngynge ȝyfte, or reward for syngynge, syparium. † singing loaf n. Obsolete = singing bread n. ΘΚΠ society > faith > artefacts > consumables > eucharistic elements > bread > [noun] fleshc1000 ofleteOE mannaa1200 breada1225 bread of lifea1300 host1303 bodya1325 obleya1325 God's bodya1387 cakec1390 singing bread1432 bread of wheata1450 singing loaf1530 God's bread1535 bread god?1548 round robin?1548 holy bread1552 singing cake1553 Jack-in-the-box1554 wafer-cake?1554 wafer1559 wafer-bread1565 breaden god1570 mass cake1579 wafer-god1623 hostel1624 maker1635 hostie1641 oblata1721 altar bread1839 prosphora1874 1530 W. Tyndale Pract. Prelates sig. Fviij A great deale of flower wolde not make so manye hostes as they call them or synginge loues. 1546 T. Phaer Bk. Children (1553) T viij b Make a fewe pylles of aloes,..wynde them in a piece of a singing lofe,..and let them be swalowed. Categories » singing-muscle n. one of the syringeal muscles of a singing-bird ( Cent. Dict.). singing point n. Telephony the maximum gain that a telephone repeater can have without being liable to self-oscillation in the circuit. ΘΚΠ society > communication > telecommunication > telegraphy or telephony > telephony > [noun] > maximum usable gain singing point1924 1924 K. S. Johnson Transmission Circuits Teleph. Communication xiv. 166 The singing point or the limiting condition beyond which satisfactory operation of the repeater cannot be maintained. 1934 Post Office Electr. Engineers Jrnl. 27 231/2 The vertical scale gives the singing point of a repeater in decibels. † singing psalms n. Obsolete the metrical version of the psalms used for singing in church. ΘΚΠ society > faith > worship > church music > psalm > kinds of psalm > metrical > [noun] > collectively singing psalms1679 1679 J. Bunyan Fear of God in Wks. (1852) I. 473 I will set it before thee both as it is in the reading and in the singing psalms. 1710 W. Beveridge Wks. (1846) VIII. 615 Great endeavours..have been made..to cast out the Old, and bring in a New Version of the Singing-Psalms. singing-seat n. U.S. a choir seat. ΚΠ 1847 Knickerbocker Mag. 30 527 I..have obtained some notoriety in our parish choir for playing the bass-viol and leading the singers in the First Congregational singing-seats. 1887 M. E. Wilkins Humble Romance 60 David Ayres, in his place in the second row of the singing seats, watched them soberly. † singing wine n. Obsolete ? wine used in celebrating mass. ΘΚΠ society > faith > artefacts > consumables > eucharistic elements > wine > [noun] winec1005 bloodOE blood of Christc1384 singing wine1558 cup1597 sacrament-wine1698 1558 Fraternity Holy Ghost, Basingstoke (1882) 9 Item payed for singinge wyne, ij d. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1911; most recently modified version published online March 2022). singingadj. Brit. /ˈsɪŋɪŋ/, U.S. /ˈsɪŋɪŋ/ Forms: Also Middle English syngynge. Origin: Formed within English, by derivation. Etymon: -ing suffix². Etymology: -ing suffix². I. That sings. 1. a. That sings; giving forth song. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > singing > [adjective] singingc1340 caroling1867 the world > animals > birds > [adjective] > making a sound merryOE warbling1549 singing1798 rolling1839 c1340 Nominale (Skeat) 128 Syngynge man silden weputh. c1595 Countess of Pembroke Psalme lxvi. 12 in Coll. Wks. (1998) II. 75 All earth I say, and all earth dwellers, Be of his worth the singing tellers. 1600 W. Shakespeare Henry V i. ii. 198 The singing masons building roofes of gold. 1779 Mirror No. 24 We have the whistling plow~man, the singing milk-maid. 1798 S. T. Coleridge Fears in Solitude 1 O'er stiller place No singing sky-lark ever pois'd himself. 1820 P. B. Shelley Prometheus Unbound iv. i. 149 The bright visions, Wherein the singing spirits rode and shone. 1882 J. Parker Apostolic Life I. 12 Like a singing angel newly sent from the glad heavens. b. In names of birds, etc. ΚΠ 1864–5 J. G. Wood Homes without Hands (1868) xii. 218 A most beautiful pensile nest is made by the Singing Honey-Eater (Ptilotus sonorus). 1884 G. B. Goode in G. B. Goode et al. Fisheries U.S.: Sect. I 253 The Batrachidæ are represented on the Pacific coast by the ‘Singing-fish’, or ‘Toad-fish’, Porichthys porosissimus. 2. Specially or professionally employed in singing; engaged or hired to sing: a. singing man n. a man engaged to sing in an ecclesiastical choir. ΘΚΠ society > faith > church government > laity > lay functionaries > chorister > [noun] songereOE childOE clergionc1325 choristerc1360 chanterc1384 quirera1425 choirman1488 singing man1527 clerk1549 chorista1552 songman1599 singing boy1666 sing-man1691 white boy1691 white man1691 choirist1773 secular1786 chorister-boy1817 choirboy1843 1527–8 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 346 Paide to a singing-man of Sent Anthis..for keping of our lady mas. 1597 T. Morley Plaine & Easie Introd. Musicke 156 To haue plaide it on the Organes with a quier of singing men. 1602 T. Campion Obseruations Art Eng. Poesie sig. A7^v Sir Thomas Moore..makes two sundry Epitaphs vpon the death of a singing man at Westminster. 1655 T. Fuller Church-hist. Brit. xi. 179 He heavily aggravated the debauchednesse of Singingmen. 1725 Portland Papers VI. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) 100 Mr. Bierly..married a daughter of Dan. Williams the Singing-man of Westminster. 1786 T. Busby Compl. Dict. Music Singing-Man, the appellation formerly given by the common people to the gentlemen of cathedral choirs. 1789 C. Burney Gen. Hist. Music III. 22 He procured a singing-man's place in the cathedral of Norwich. 1905 E. Candler Unveiling of Lhasa xiv. 269 The Abbot begins the chant, and the monks, facing each other like singing-men in a choir, repeat the litany. figurative.1594 T. Nashe Vnfortunate Traveller sig. K As many sortes of shrill breasted birdes, as the Summer hath allowed for singing men in her siluane chapels. b. Similarly singing boy, singing clerk. Also, in other than ecclesiastical use, singing girl, singing woman. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > music > musician > singer > [noun] > female singeressa1382 chantressc1390 singing girl1535 songstress1684 music-girl1734 cantatrice1803 chanteuse1823 canary1862 singstress1873 chantoosie1940 thrush1940 warbler1946 society > faith > church government > laity > lay functionaries > chorister > [noun] songereOE childOE clergionc1325 choristerc1360 chanterc1384 quirera1425 choirman1488 singing man1527 clerk1549 chorista1552 songman1599 singing boy1666 sing-man1691 white boy1691 white man1691 choirist1773 secular1786 chorister-boy1817 choirboy1843 1535 Bible (Coverdale) 2 Chron. xxxv. 25 All the synginge men and wemen [1611 the singing women]. 1548 T. Cooper Bibliotheca Eliotæ (rev. ed.) Cantrix,..a syngyng woman. 1666 S. Pepys Diary 26 Feb. (1972) VII. 58 And hither comes cushions to us, and a young singing-boy to bring us a copy of the Anthemne to be sung. 1682 N. O. tr. N. Boileau-Despréaux Lutrin iv. 25 Let Singing-boyes Whose Pension's pay for 't, do those Drudgeries! 1709 R. Steele Tatler No. 41 Mr. John Taplash..desires your Vote for Singing-Clerk of this Parish. 1734 A. Pope Sober Advice from Horace 5 ‘With Wives I never sin.’ But Singing-Girls and Mimicks draw him in. 1820 T. Mitchell in tr. Aristophanes Comedies I. 302 (note) The dicast..enters with a torch in one hand, and leads a singing-girl in the other. 1880 R. Browning Muléykeh 59 For a couple of singing-girls his robe has he torn in two. 3. singing bird n. a bird that sings; a songster. Usually applied to cage-birds; the plural is also sometimes used as a rendering of oscines n. 2. ΘΚΠ the world > animals > birds > sound or bird defined by > [noun] > bird that makes sound singing bird1565 songbird1573 whistler1590 singer1626 songster1656 songstress1684 poeta1748 squeaker1808 twitterer1815 night singer1816 song-fowl1877 1565 T. Cooper Thesaurus Cantrices aues, syngyng byrdes. 1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II i. iii. 256 + 21 Suppose the singing birds musitions. 1626 F. Bacon Sylua Syluarum §239 We see also, that Cock-birds, among Singing-birds, are ever the better singers. 1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 5. ¶7 The next time it is Acted, the Singing Birds will be Personated by Tom-Tits. 1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth V. 339 Of the Canary-bird, and other hard billed Singing-birds. 1817 W. Scott Rob Roy I. v. 104 They are like imprisoned singing-birds. 1841 T. R. Jones Gen. Outl. Animal Kingdom xxix. 604 It is owing to the capacity of the air-cells that the Singing Birds are enabled to prolong their notes. in extended use.1848 C. Kingsley Saint's Trag. iii. iv. 176 Mealy-mouthed inquisitors, and shaven singing-birds. 4. That makes or gives out a sound of a musical character (cf. sing v.¹ 6). ΘΚΠ the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > resonance or sonority > [adjective] loudc897 shillOE brightOE shillinga1225 soundingc1374 ringingc1400 sonore?c1400 resoundingc1425 sonousc1429 resoundable?c1500 soundish1530 high-sounding1560 singing1565 resonant1572 trolling1581 rumbelow1582 sonorous1611 canorous1646 remugient1660 retentive1728 fullish1770 pealing1794 resonating1845 plangent1858 resonatory1880 timbrous1929 1565 T. Cooper Thesaurus Sagitta stridens, a syngyng arow. 1629 F. Quarles Argalus & Parthenia iii. 122 His winged messenger..did hide His singing feathers, in his wounded side. 1642 T. Fuller Holy State v. xvi. 423 Malice, which..like hollow singing bullets, flies but halfway to the mark. 1716 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad II. v. 214 Thro' the thick Storm of singing Spears he flies. 1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Iliad in Iliad & Odyssey I. xviii. 432 The water in the singing brass Simmer'd. 1820 P. B. Shelley Prometheus Unbound iv. i. 135 Sounds, Sweet as a singing rain of silver dew. 1855 H. W. Longfellow Hiawatha Introd. 5 Beyond them..Stood the groves of singing pine-trees. II. Of the nature of singing; song-like. 5. Of the nature of singing; having the musical qualities of song. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > music > type of music > vocal music > [adjective] > having quality of singinga1400 songy1848 a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 11244 Aungels..brouȝt word with syngynge steuen. a1586 Sir P. Sidney tr. Psalmes David (1823) xxxiii. ii O now accord Violls with singing voice. c1595 Countess of Pembroke Psalme lxviii. 86 in Coll. Wks. (1998) II. 81 On the lord your singing gladnes spend. 1697 C. Leslie Snake in Grass (ed. 2) 115 A She-Preacher..with a Trembling Voice, and Singing Tone. 1725 A. Ramsay Gentle Shepherd i. ii The water fa's, and makes a singand din. 1763 Ann. Reg. 1762 ii. 37 I have acquired by habit that singing tone of voice which is common in our mountains. 1860 J. Tyndall Glaciers of Alps ii. xvii. 317 The intervals between the louder reports being filled by a low singing noise. Compounds singing arc n. A direct current arc across which is connected a tuned circuit, causing the arc to oscillate and emit a sound at the frequency of the tuned circuit. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > physics > science of sound > vibration > [noun] > direct current arc singing arc1903 the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electronics > electronic phenomena > [noun] > waveform > arc discharge producing short waves > direct current arc singing arc1903 1903 Sci. Abstr. A. 6 30 The author suggests replacing the ordinary high-capacity condensers necessary to produce Duddell's ‘singing arc’ by the much less costly aluminium condenser. 1906 Electrician 21 Dec. 375/1 Limitations as to frequency..beset the use of the singing arc as a transformer of the direct mains current into uninterrupted high-frequency alternating current. 1913 Year-bk. Wireless Telegr. & Teleph. 399 Duddrell's discovery of the singing arc in 1900. 1950 S. G. Starling & A. J. Woodall Physics xxxvi. 874 The singing arc..where electrical and thermal factors are involved in the maintenance of oscillations. singing (arc) lamp n. (see quot. 1883). ΚΠ 1883 W. S. Gresley Gloss. Terms Coal Mining Singing Lamp, a safety lamp which, when placed in an atmosphere of explosive gas, gives out a peculiar sound or note. 1903 Work 2 May 203/1 A singing arc lamp, invented by a German named Simon, of Frankfort. singing-buoy n. A buoy having something attached which gives out a singing sound. ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > buoys, marks, or lighthouses > [noun] > buoy > other types of buoy can-buoy1626 mast-buoy1675 nun buoy1703 breakwater1769 under-buoy1793 light buoy1822 bell-buoy1838 spar-buoy1860 gas buoy1865 whistling buoy1880 puppy1890 singing-buoy1894 gas float1895 1894 Outing 24 460/2 A singing-buoy had been torn from its moorings. singing coal n. (See quot. 1883). ΘΚΠ the world > the earth > minerals > mineral deposits > [noun] > stratum or bed > of coal > seam of specific coal singing coal1855 jet seam1873 1855 J. Phillips Man. Geol. 193 Strata, including singeing [sic] coal. 1883 W. S. Gresley Gloss. Terms Coal Mining 223 Singing Coal, a bed of coal from which gas is ordinarily issuing from the partly-exposed face in the mine, producing a hissing sound. singing glass n. (See quot. 1875). ΘΚΠ the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > resonance or sonority > [noun] > echo chamber or instrument whispering-placea1661 singing glass1669 sound-board1766 sounding-board1766 whispering-gallery1812 reverberation chamber1925 echo room1933 echo chamber1937 1669 S. Pepys Diary 23 Feb. (1976) IX. 457 I had one or two singing-glasses made, which make an echo to the voice, the first that ever I saw. 1792 G. Galloway Poems 34 To see..Mr Cartwright's singing glasses. 1875 E. H. Knight Amer. Mech. Dict. III. 2187/1 Singing-glass, a thin, sonorous glass vessel, which yields an echo when vibrated by a sound. singing hinny n. (Northern dialect). A kind of cake which emits a hissing sound while cooking on a girdle. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > food > dishes and prepared food > cake > [noun] > a cake > griddle cake hot cake1683 griddle-cake1783 flannel-cake1792 slapjack1805 knead-cake1810 singing hinny1825 Welsh cake1867 tough-cake1881 1825 J. T. Brockett Gloss. North Country Words Singin or Singing-hinny, a kneaded spice cake baked on the girdle; indispensable in a pitman's family. 1832 W. Stephenson Coll. Local Poems, Songs, &c. 27 Ma canny bairns come get your tea, I've made a singing hinny. 1855 J. R. Leifchild Cornwall: Mines & Miners 283 The Cornish cottage has no ‘singing hinnies’, or rich girdle cakes. 1863 E. C. Gaskell Sylvia's Lovers I. iv. 63 Neither cream nor finest wheaten flour was wanting for ‘turf-cakes’ and ‘singing-hinnies’. singing sand n. Desert or beach sand that emits a singing, whistling, humming, or other continuous sound when disturbed. ΘΚΠ the world > the earth > structure of the earth > constituent materials > stone > stony material > [noun] > sand > types of sea-sandc1220 black sand1536 gold sand1578 quicksand1641 iron sand1681 crag1735 Bude sand1808 musical sand1858 sounding sand1884 singing sand1897 squeaking sand1966 1884 Proc. 32nd Meeting Amer. Assoc. Advancem. Sci. 251 (heading) The singing beach of Manchester, Mass.] 1897 M. Kingsley Trav. W. Afr. 175 A patch of singing sand under my feet. 1930 J. R. Partington Text-bk. Inorg. Chem. 725 ‘Singing sand’, which emits a peculiar squeaking note when pressed, consists of rounded grains of nearly uniform size. It occurs..in various localities. 1941 R. A. Bagnold Physics of Blown Sand & Desert Dunes xvii. 251 I have found singing sand on the slip~faces of both seif and barchan dunes and of drifts formed under the shelter of cliffs. 1970 R. Johnston Black Camels viii. 133 The night-long background music of the dunes was silenced. They were through the singing sands. singing tree n. a West Indian tree, the pods of which make a singing sound when stirred by the wind. ΘΚΠ the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > non-British trees or shrubs > South American and West Indian trees or shrubs > [noun] > unidentified, unspecified, or various silver-wood1693 grapple-wood1750 brown-heart1796 singing tree1885 1885 A. Brassey In Trades 340 The flamboyant..is very abundant here [i.e. in the Bahamas]; as is also the ‘singing’ tree, which we first saw in Jamaica. Draft additions December 2021 singing bowl n. a bowl-shaped musical instrument which produces a sustained note when a mallet is rotated around its outside rim, and which is typically used to accompany periods of meditation or chanting; frequently associated with Tibetan Buddhism and often in Tibetan singing bowl.Singing bowls are usually made of metal, or sometimes crystal. Water may be added to the bowls to allow different notes to be produced. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > music > musical instrument > other musical instruments > [noun] > others coriunc1275 symphonyc1290 symphan1303 minstrelsyc1390 bougounc1400 clokarde?c1475 dulsacordisa1525 symphioun1578 sumphion?1590 clasher1621 orphion1658 polyphone1684 roundball1688 phonomime1834 orchestrion1838 sabbeka1844 bullroarer1848 creaker1855 melodikon1857 symphonia1864 organophone1880 magnetophone1883 Kaffir piano1897 jazzophone1926 mouth bow1932 wobbleboard1960 singing bowl1980 1980 Radio Times 11 Dec. 61/3 (title of radio programme) The singing bowls of Tibet. 1999 D. Fontana Learn to Meditate 49/1 You can sound a bell [or] a singing bowl..at the beginning and end of the session. 2009 All that Matters Fall 12/1 Experience the vibrational healing of the bronze gong and Tibetan singing bowls during this deep sound relaxation. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1911; most recently modified version published online March 2022). < n.c1374adj.c1340
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