nasal
8
4.2
- adjective
- /ˈneɪ.zəl/
:
nasal
- The auctioneer's chant was unmistakably nasal, making it easy to hear his calls from a distance.
- nasal tone
- a nasal quality
All audio only delivered in DeSantis trademark nasal voice.
- All audio only delivered in DeSantis trademark nasal voice.
- I find it so grating to listen to sort of nasal, it's glottal.
Examples
-
I always thought it was kind of nasal and pinched.
-
Alfred began to sing, his nasal voice bouncing off the roof of his mouth.
Fiction book (1991) -
His voice was nasal, the effect of keeping one eye open and the other eye shut.
Fiction book (2002) -
Anna, she said my name the wrong way, the A's all nasal, like everybody else.
Fiction book (1999) -
The New Jersey accent becomes increasingly nasal the further South one goes.
-
" The newcomer's voice was high and nasal, almost like a Boston accent.
Fiction book (1999) -
"No, I guess you didn't," he said in a nasal voice rough with contempt.
Fiction book (1990) -
Maybe you'll move back in with her," she said, in that flat nasal Midwestern voice.
Fiction book (1996) -
He has this odd, little, nasal voice and a pompous, fat body.
-
To my surprise, the faint flashing stopped, the speakerphone booted up, and a nasal voice said, "Hello?"
Fiction book (2001)
Synonyms
Compounds
- Specialized
4
4.2
One of the two hollow spaces inside the nose that lead to the throat and help breathing and smelling
- Specialized
1
8.4
A thin curved bone inside the nose that helps warm and filter the air
- Specialized
A bent wall inside the nose that makes breathing difficult on one side
- Specialized
A vein that drains blood from the surface of the nose toward a vein in the face
- Specialized
The inner corner of the eye where the top and bottom eyelids meet near the nose
- Specialized
A small rubber bulb and tip for gently washing or removing mucus from the nose
- Specialized
A speech sound made by letting air through the nose while the mouth is closed, like m, n, or ng
- Specialized
An opening at the back of the nose that leads into the upper throat
How Constricted
Surface Forms
Morphology
nasal = nose (semi-transparent) = nas + al
The sound/voice meaning is clearly related to the nose, but it is a slightly extended metaphorical use of the same classical base.
Etymology
Nasal comes from the Latin root nasus, meaning 'nose'. So a nasal voice sounds as if it comes through the nose, like when your nose is blocked.