Definition of sonorant in English:
 sonorant
noun ˈsɒn(ə)r(ə)ntsəˈnɔːr(ə)ntˈsänərənt
Phonetics A sound produced with the vocal cords so positioned that spontaneous voicing is possible; a vowel, a glide, or a liquid or nasal consonant.
 Example sentencesExamples
-  Moreover, fricatives can be targeted by the glottal feature, but are optimally realised as sonorants in such cases.
 -  Voiced obstruents can stand only before vowels, sonorants and voiced obstruents in the same word.
 -  If there were minimal pairs, we would have to conclude that voiced and voiceless sonorants are separate phonemes.
 -  She also found a sex-linked effect with initial sonorants vs. obstruents: obstruents were hotter on males, sonorants on females, though only the female effect was significant.
 -  Initial glottalized sonorants are typically but not invariably pre-glottalized.
 
Origin
  
1930s: from sonorous + -ant.