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Origin and history of phonic

phonic(adj.)

"of or pertaining to sound, acoustic," 1793, from Greek phōnē "sound, voice" (from PIE root *bha- (2) "to speak, tell, say") + -ic.

also from 1793

Entries linking to phonic

stereophonic(adj.)

of reproduced sounds, "giving an impression of spatial distribution," 1927, from stereo- + phonic. As a noun to go with it, stereophony "stereophonic sound" is by 1950; stereophonics "stereophonic techniques and sounds" by 1958.

telephonic(adj.)

1830, "pertaining to communication by sound over great distances," originally theoretical, from tele- + phonic. From 1834 in reference to the system of Sudré using musical sounds (see telephone), and from 1876 with reference to Bell's electrical invention. In these cases it can be taken as from telephone + -ic. Related: Telephonically.

  • *bha-
  • -ic
  • See All Related Words (4)
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phonetic
1803, "representing vocal sounds," from Modern Latin phoneticus (Zoega, 1797), from Greek phōnētikos "vocal," from phōnētos "to be spoken, utterable," verbal adjective of phōnein "to speak clearly, utter," from phōnē "sound, voice," from PIE root *bha- (2) "to speak, tell, say" (
quadraphonic
1969, irregular hybrid formation from Latin-derived quadri- "four" + phonic, from Greek phonē "sound, voice" (from PIE root...
mollycoddle
also molly-coddle, by 1839 (implied in mollycoddling), from a noun (by 1828) meaning "overly pampered, fastidious, effeminate male," from Molly (pet name formation from Mary), which had been used contemptuously at least since 1707 for "a milksop, an effeminate man" (see molly (n.
badminton
outdoor game similar to lawn tennis but played with a shuttlecock, 1874, from Badminton House, name of Gloucestershire estate of the Duke of Beaufort, where the game first was played in England, mid-19c., having been picked up by British officers from Indian poona. The place name
Lent
"period between Ash Wednesday and Easter," late 14c., short for Lenten (n.) "the forty days of fasting before Easter" in the Christian calendar (early 12c.), from Old English lencten "springtime, spring," the season, also "the fast of Lent," from West Germanic *langitinaz "long-d
woman
"adult female human," late Old English wimman, wiman (plural wimmen), literally "woman-man," alteration of wifman (plural wifmen) "woman, female servant" (8c.), a compound of wif "woman" (see wife) + man "human being" (in Old English used in reference to both sexes; see man (n.))
April
fourth month, c. 1300, aueril, from Old French avril (11c.), from Latin (mensis) Aprilis, second month of the ancient Roman calendar, from a stem of uncertain origin and meaning, with month-name suffix -ilis as in Quintilis, Sextilis (the old names of July and August). Perhaps ba
robot
1923, "mechanical person," also "person whose work or activities are entirely mechanical," from the English translation of the 1920 play "R.U.R." ("Rossum's Universal Robots") by Karel Capek (1890-1938), from Czech robotnik "forced worker," from robota "forced labor, compulsory s
magpie
popular name of a common bird of Europe, Asia, and America, known for its chattering, acquisitiveness, curiosity, and mimicry, c. 1600, earlier simply pie (mid-13c.). The first element is Mag, nickname for Margaret, long used in proverbial and slang English for qualities associat
America
1507, "the western hemisphere, North and South America," in Cartographer Martin Waldseemüller's treatise "Cosmographiae Introductio," from Modern Latin Americanus, traditionally after Amerigo Vespucci (1454-1512) who made two trips to the New World as a navigator and claimed to h

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Trending
Dictionary entries near phonic
  • phone
  • phoneme
  • phonemic
  • phonetic
  • phonetics
  • phonic
  • phonics
  • phono-
  • phonogram
  • phonograph
  • phonographic
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