Does anyone know of a resource which we can go to for ideas on how to describe someone's voice? I would love to be able to add that detail to my WIP because voices are important to me and would make my characters easier to imagine.
This might be of some help. adenoidal (adj): if someone’s voice is adenoidal, some of the sound seems to come through their nose appealing (adj): an appealing look/voice shows that you want help, approval, or agreement breathy (adj): with loud breathing noises brittle (adj): if you speak in a brittle voice, you sound as if you are about to cry croaky (adj): if someone’s voice sounds croaky, they speak in a low, rough voice that sounds as if they have a sore throat dead (adj): if someone’s eyes or voice are dead, they feel or show no emotion disembodied (adj): a disembodied voice comes from someone who you cannot see flat (adj): spoken in a voice that does not go up and down; this word is often used for describing the speech of people from a particular region fruity (adj): a fruity voice or laugh is deep and strong in a pleasant way grating (adj): a grating voice, laugh, or sound is unpleasant and annoying gravelly (adj): a gravelly voice sounds low and rough gruff (adj): this voice has a rough, low sound guttural (adj): a guttural sound is deep and made at the back of your throat high-pitched (adj): true to its name, a high-pitched voice or sound is very high hoarse (adj): someone who is hoarse, or has a hoarse voice, speaks in a low, rough voice, usually because their throat is sore honeyed (adj): honeyed words or a honeyed voice sound very nice, but you cannot trust the person who is speaking husky (adj): a husky voice is deep and sounds hoarse (as if you have a sore throat), often in an attractive way low (adj): a low voice is quiet and difficult to hear; also used for describing a deep voice that has a long wavelength matter-of-fact (adj): usually used if the person speaking knows what they are talking about (or absolutely think they know what they are talking about) modulated (adj): a modulated voice is controlled and pleasant to listen to monotonous (adj): this kind of voice is boring and unpleasant due to the fact that it does not change in loudness or become higher/lower nasal (adj): someone with a nasal voice sounds as if they are speaking through their nose orotund (adj): an orotund voice is loud and clear penetrating (adj): a penetrating voice is so high or loud that it makes you slightly uncomfortable plummy (adj): a plummy voice or way of speaking is considered to be typical of an English person of a high social class; this word shows that you dislike people who speak like this quietly (adj): in a soft, quiet voice raucous (adj): a raucous voice or noise is loud and sounds rough ringing (adj): a ringing voice is very loud and clear rough (adj): a rough voice is not soft and is unpleasant to listen to shrill (adj): a shrill voice is very loud, high, and unpleasant silvery (adj): this voice is clear, light, and pleasant singsong (adj): if you speak in a singsong voice, your voice rises and falls in a musical way small (adj): a small voice is quiet smoky (adj): a smoky voice is sexually attractive in a slightly mysterious way softly spoken (adj): someone who is softly spoken has a quiet, gentle voice soft-spoken (adj): speaking or said in a quiet, gentle voice sotto voce (adj, adv): in a very quiet voice stentorian (adj): a stentorian voice sounds very loud and severe strangled (adj): a strangled sound is one that someone stops before they finish making it strident (adj): this voice is loud and unpleasant taut (adj): used about something such as a voice that shows someone is nervous or angry thick (adj): if your voice is thick with an emotion, it sounds less clear than usual because of the emotion thickly (adv): with a low voice that comes mostly from your throat thin (adj): a thin voice or sound is high and unpleasant to listen to throaty (adj): a throaty sound is low and seems to come from deep in your throat tight (adj): shows that you are nervous or annoyed toneless (adj): does not express any emotion tremulous (adj): if your voice is tremulous, it is not steady; for example, because you are afraid or excited wheezy (adj): a wheezy noise sounds as if it is made by someone who has difficulty breathing wobbly (adj): if your voice is wobbly, it goes up and down, usually because you are frightened, not confident, or are going to cry booming (adj): very loud and attention-getting quavering (adv): if your voice quavers, it is not steady because you are feeling nervous or afraid a voice like a foghorn: very loud voice in an undertone: using a quiet voice so that someone cannot hear you someone’s dulcet tones: the sound of someone’s voice as they speak
Thanks for this too, Cave Troll. What about the kind of voice that's not sing song, but emphatic and the opposite to flat?
OK, thanks. I don't think Melodic is right. I know people who speak with melodic voices and their voices are almost in a melody and definitely different from what I am trying to describe.
I have never come across this word before. The definition fits exactly with what I am describing. Many thanks BrianIff!
For a bit, I was thinking of how newscasters talk and their inflections, but didn't know that 'cadence' could be something besides a noun till I looked it up. Glad I could help.
That makes sense. When I checked the definition I saw cadence is often used to describe poetry, is that what you write?
Not often, but aside from hearing it a few times, I was living there when this guy was named Edmonton's poet laureate: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadence_Weapon
Ha! Well, having checked out your link I now appreciate the humour in your reply! It appears that I just keep on learning new things all the time...
A sad day it would be indeed when there will be nothing more to learn. Or even worse, if nothing will be learned.
Thanks GingerCoffee, I will credit these useful sources below: 1) The link from Necronox takes you to, 'Fifty five ways to describe a voice', on Tumblr. 2) The link from Cave Troll takes you to the 'Macmillan dictionary'.
Well I would have sourced it if I had not already posted the important part. Saves time that way. Besides I am not using this for monetary gain anywho.