stentorian
adjective
Did you know?
The Greek herald Stentor was known for having a voice that came through loud and clear. In fact, in the Iliad, Homer described Stentor as a man whose voice was as loud as that of fifty men together. Stentor's powerful voice made him a natural choice for delivering announcements and proclamations to the assembled Greek army during the Trojan War, and it also made his name a byword for any person with a loud, strong voice. Both the noun stentor and the related adjective stentorian pay homage to the big-voiced warrior, and both have been making noise in English since the early 17th century.
Synonyms
- blaring
- blasting
- booming
- clamorous
- clangorous
- deafening
- earsplitting
- loud
- piercing
- plangent
- resounding
- ringing
- roaring
- slam-bang
- sonorous
- thundering
- thunderous
Example Sentences
Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 13 June 2022 The stentorian bass Franz-Josef Selig made a robust, good-natured Daland. New York Times, 3 Mar. 2020 Unfortunately, Pressley’s stentorian affect detracts from the authenticity of the dialogue between Washington and his contemporaries, undermining Coe’s argument that the founders were people too, just like us. Tatiana Schlossberg, New York Times, 29 Apr. 2020 His replacement as the Dutchman, Evgeny Nikitin, was monochromatic and stentorian, and his steely bass-baritone expressed none of the Dutchman’s anguish or mystery. Heidi Waleson, WSJ, 4 Mar. 2020 On the eve of the game’s release, one fan stitched together a trailer, backed by a stentorian soundtrack, highlighting the variety of media that had been created. Simon Parkin, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2020 Sadly, Roberto Alagna, as Samson, started out the night wobbly and stentorian, and despite some moments of ringing power, his tenor shredded audibly as the night progressed, concluding with a painful yelp. Heidi Waleson, WSJ, 1 Oct. 2018 Showerman is the least effective actor in the bunch, affecting a stentorian voice and officious manner that come across as parodic. Donna Freedman, Anchorage Daily News, 23 Oct. 2019 The transition to these new tones had been masked, so the tragic-hued change came as a gentle surprise, all the more effective for having being delivered without any obvious, stentorian announcement. Seth Colter Walls, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2018 See More Word History
1605, in the meaning defined above
stentorian
adjective
Synonyms & Similar Words
- loud
- deafening
- ringing
- roaring
- shrill
- thunderous
- sonorous
- thundering
- plangent
- earsplitting
- piercing
- blasting
- clamorous
- booming
- blaring
- noisy
- clangorous
- resounding
- slam-bang
- vociferous
- raucous
- strident
- brazen
- obstreperous
- discordant
- harsh
- grating
- squealing
- rip-roaring
- overloud
- dinning
- sharp
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- gentle
- low
- soft
- silent
- quiet
- dead
- calm
- soothing
- muffled
- serene
- still
- dreamy
- peaceful
- tranquil
- hushed
- restful
- muted
- ultraquiet
- stilly
- softened
- toned (down)
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of stentorian are earsplitting, loud, raucous, and strident. While all these words mean "marked by intensity or volume of sound," stentorian implies great power and range.
While in some cases nearly identical to stentorian, earsplitting implies loudness that is physically discomforting.
The meanings of loud and stentorian largely overlap; however, loud applies to any volume above normal and may suggest undue vehemence or obtrusiveness.
The synonyms raucous and stentorian are sometimes interchangeable, but raucous implies a loud harsh grating tone, especially of voice, and may suggest rowdiness.
The words strident and stentorian can be used in similar contexts, but strident implies a rasping discordant but insistent quality, especially of voice.