SOUND


Meaning of SOUND in English

I. noun

COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES

a bell sounds

Somewhere across the valley a bell sounded.

a deep/sound/heavy sleep (= a sleep from which you cannot easily be woken )

The noise woke him from a deep sleep.

a distant sound

Sometimes you can hear the distant sound of traffic from the main road.

a sound/firm/secure footing

They managed to get the business onto a more secure footing.

a sound/firm/solid basis

Drama school may provide a sound basis for an acting career.

a sound/secure base

A child needs a responsive mother in order to form a secure base for future development.

arrive safe and sound (= safely )

It was a great relief when he arrived back safe and sound.

break the sound barrier (= travel faster than the speed of sound )

deliver/sound a warning (= give a public warning )

The chairman sounded a warning that jobs could be lost.

fast/sound asleep (= sleeping deeply )

feel/look/sound offended

Stella was beginning to feel a little offended.

look/sound apologetic

Dan came in looking very apologetic.

look/sound depressed

Is Jo all right? She sounded a bit depressed.

look/sound familiar

The voice on the phone sounded familiar.

look/sound nervous

He sounded nervous and uncertain.

look/sound/feel bored

Some of the students were starting to look bored.

look/sound/feel/taste/seem like

The garden looked like a jungle.

At last he felt like a real soldier.

looks/seems/sounds fine

In theory, the scheme sounds fine.

muffled the sound

The falling snow muffled the sound of our footsteps.

plaintive cry/voice/sound etc

the plaintive cry of the seagull

safe and sound/well (= unharmed, especially after being in danger )

The missing children were found safe and sound.

seem/look/sound embarrassed

The judge seemed embarrassed to be asking her such personal questions.

sound all right

We’ll eat at eight. Does that sound all right to you?

sound barrier

sound bite

sound check

sound common sense (= sensible and reliable )

These ideas contained much sound common sense.

sound effects

sound enthusiastic

‘I’m sure we can do it,’ she said, trying to sound enthusiastic.

sound obvious

This may sound obvious, but don’t forget to put your name on your paper.

sound quality

I apologise for the poor sound quality of this recording.

sound shocked

"Of course not!" he exclaimed, sounding shocked.

sound system

sound wave

sound (= sensible )

I thought that this was sound advice.

sounding board

John always used her as a sounding board for new ideas.

sound/look relieved

Jen looked relieved to see me.

sounds crazy

I know this idea sounds crazy , but it may be worth a try.

(sound/strike/toll) the death knell for/of sth

The loss of Georgia would sound the death knell of Republican hopes.

sound/taste/smell/feel etc great

I worked out this morning and I feel great.

You look great in that dress.

sound/toot/honk/blow your horn (= make a noise with your horn )

sth sounds (like) fun (= seems to be enjoyable )

The picnic sounded like fun.

strong/healthy/sound

The new government inherited a strong economy.

structurally sound (= in good condition )

Is the building structurally sound ?

COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS

■ ADJECTIVE

different

And every one gives a different sound .

Have the students experiment to see how many different sounds they can make.

There are more than 500 different sounds on the synthesizer, each of which has a complete scale on the keyboard.

The AK47 and the M16 make very different sounds .

I used a lot of different sounds for the album.

But I worry that the different sounds for the same object will confuse her.

He was driving away from me grounds of Hauser's estate when he heard a different engine sound .

Winamp too lets you set it as the default player for all different types of sound files.

familiar

They're a familiar sound - police, ambulance, fire engine; electronic donkeys braying.

And as Gargy Patel reports, it's also provided one the city's most familiar sounds .

I thought for an incredible moment that I caught something familiar in the sound - but it couldn't be.

It was a familiar sound to her.

As the mail train thundered past and disappeared into the distance he heard the familiar sound of footsteps.

Houses have weird silhouettes in the soft rain, noises come through open windows, television voices, familiar sound tracks.

The familiar sounds brought Jehan to a sense of the place and the time.

It had become a familiar sound over the last couple of days.

only

The only sound now was their feet rustling through the shore grass, coarse and hard from countless tides of salt water.

Soon the only sound came from the carousing in the hall below.

On the landing the only sound was Jos's deep snoring from the room next door.

The only sound came from the ticking of a clock.

The only other sound to be heard was the chirping of birds.

He commented patronisingly that almost the only sounds he heard from Baldwin during Cabinets were the rhythmic sucking of his pipe.

The only sounds to be heard were the sheep's teeth tearing grass and their low, rumbling bleats.

Here the only sound was the faint hum of the air-filters overhead.

■ VERB

hear

I could hear the sound of a kettle being filled.

All I want to hear is the sound of the wind rushing through this funky old tub.

And, on cue, he heard the sound of hoofbeats ` on the wind.

The first hears the most fragile sounds of the passing countryside, the other knows he is capable of the swiftest speed.

He could hear the sound of a wireless so he knew some one must be in.

Dyslexics may hear sounds but find it difficult to translate those sounds into words.

No one came, I heard no sounds .

I heard a low murmuring sound .

listen

He opened the door and paused for a moment, listening for sounds of Mrs Blakey.

We would lie in bed together, listening to the sounds of Paris outside.

She guessed that he had been standing at the window or listening for the sound of her key in the lock.

He listened to the muffled sound waver and fall in pitch, like a faraway siren.

Here ... Valerie listened for suspicious sounds on the tape, and despised herself for so doing.

Stark made another swing, and I closed my eyes and listened for the sounds of good golf.

Claudia lying in her hut listening for the first sounds of life.

But he was tired so he just lay there, listening to the street sounds , and waited for morning.

make

Flak blotted the sky ahead, making remote grunting sounds .

The others nodded, made agreeable sounds , and drifted off down the corridor.

She remembered making the right sounds and moving like a puppet as the party began.

This made it sound to them as though color were beneath me.

Fenella, Lisabeth's younger, slimmer room-mate, had sneaked down the stairs from their flat without making a sound .

His hands over his head, he was pulling the steel headrest, his breath making a low-pitched moaning sound .

Ropes let down into it seem to go down for ever, coins dropped never make a sound , etc.

muffle

The snow drifted down, muffling the sounds of the party, the fireworks spluttering, falling damply into the dark night.

He listened to the muffled sound waver and fall in pitch, like a faraway siren.

The volume of the music muffled the sounds of the attack, and no-one heard her screams for help.

From the other side of the wall, she could hear the low muffled sounds of the television in the next room.

This method serves a dual function - it will absorb irregularities in the existing floorboards, and also muffle sound .

If Fen entered the galley for any reason, the curtain was not sufficient barrier to muffle the sound of sobbing.

She laughed hysterically, jamming her fingers into her mouth to muffle the sound .

produce

There are four pianos in the pit, two with sheets of paper laid across the strings to produce dull percussive sounds .

Speaking a language involves producing sounds for others to hear, understand, and act upon.

Richie, who always lay on his back, produced a sound similar to the underwater gurgling of an old motorboat.

They produced a remarkably consistent sound for the revolving-door group.

Mackenzie went on to produce fractal sounds from sampled real world waveforms.

Leaving behind the familiar phrasings, Coltrane began to produce swirls of sound and visceral shrieks that puzzled and angered music critics.

As if by magic, a stereo disc or tape heard through headphones produces a surround of sound .

Like Jefferson, he pursued the dream of producing sound table wine from Eastern soil at affordable prices for the masses.

PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES

(hear the sound of) wedding bells

I don't want to sound/be ..., but ...

ambient music/sounds

sickening thud/crash/sound etc

Her heart took up a sickening thud.

One pitched out, hitting the ground with a sickening thud.

Then she landed on the Market Square flagstones with a sickening crash to lie motionless.

Then, with a sickening thud in her solar plexus, she understood.

They heard screams, kicks, the sickening thud of a punch, and the ogre roaring Solper's name.

the ghost of a smile/sound etc

the sound barrier

EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES

a vowel sound

From the next room came the sound of laughter.

Some of these planes can travel faster than the speed of sound .

Something's wrong with the TV - you can see the pictures, but there's no sound .

the fascinating sights and sounds of Marrakesh

The only sound in the house was the ticking of the clock.

There's no sound coming from the TV.

What's that funny rattling sound coming from the back of the car?

EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS

But there were neither apologies nor regrets, and the air rang to the sound of hundreds of cheers.

Colourful flashing lights synchronize the sound .

From the kitchen came the sound of pots thrown to the floor.

She liked the sizzling sound of the water as it hit the stones when some one threw it from the bucket.

The ground mist clung closely to the hedgerows, discouraging the birds and damping down all sound .

What you hear will incorporate high-fidelity sound , speech synthesis, and speech recognition.

II. verb

COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS

■ ADVERB

almost

It sounds almost like an adumbration of gravitation.

As he tells it, it does sound almost like a stage farce.

When her assailant spoke he sounded almost offended, which struck Rachel as strange since she appeared to be the injured party.

It sounds almost like a storybook story.

It's the same sort of sound but much lower in volume and pitch - it almost sounds like a stomach rumbling.

So far, this probably sounds almost too simple.

So a belief that there were Communists in the Army could be made to sound almost plausible.

as

BShields used to undermine her fiction by sounding as if she were inhaling the microphone.

The ads never distracted listeners from the music but could sound as wild and greasy and cool as the platters played alongside.

Never mind nature taking its course, it sounds as though you're plotting to seduce him.

Their voices sounded as if they should be coming from the mouths of cute, fuzzy characters on some Saturday morning cartoon.

I called, got through and spoke to a man who sounded as ordinary and as sane as I thought I was.

Kantner and Palmer participated in a media conference call Wednesday and sounded as if they had undergone proper corporate indoctrination.

His voice was nasal, to the extent that it sounded as if there was a clothes peg clipped on to his nose.

Amazingly, he sounded as if that was exactly what he meant.

like

But he has, making it sound like a golden lacework surrounding the crystalline vocals of Carol Kidd.

That was what she sounded like to me, like a woman squealing.

Pretty Samantha Mumba sounded like she has a distinctive voice.

Unfortunately, it sounds like yours is in the latter category.

He sounded like he had never felt better in his life.

His eloquent description makes it sound like a building that any community would be proud to have in its midst.

A beautiful dish, it is more or less what it sounds like , sticky rice wrapped in green striated lotus leaves.

Domestic violence, I said, was what it sounded like to me.

more

Even the people sounded more Southern than Western.

No, it sounded more as if she was being forced to protect some one, maybe Keith.

Elizabeth Hanford Dole often acts and sounds more like a candidate than the candidate.

Already they've scaled up their fluid star-burst psychedelia into something that sounds more suited to outdoor festivals than stuffed solid mini-venues.

He sounded more Tolstoyan than all the rest of us.

Now his incantations of the old slogans of national independence and identity sounded more and more hollow.

Another class that sounded more adventurous was located in Cambridge.

quite

Although it sounds quite funny picking up children and carrying them can be tricky when you can hardly walk.

Some of these questions may sound quite sophisticated and too advanced for many people.

He sounded quite normal when he phoned, just annoyed about the holiday.

Put like that it didn't sound quite so convincing.

It doesn't sound quite as good as education, education, education.

Given identical soundboards, lutes made of cherry and rosewood will sound quite different.

He made it sound quite an ordinary request and I didn't like to ask why.

Some were like herself, some were from the suburbs and some sounded quite posh.

rather

It sounds rather pompous, I dare say, but I think it was the beginning of understanding without knowing.

I was forced to admit that put that way, it did sound rather absurd.

It is also suggested as a weapon against parasites, but this does sound rather hazardous!

He suddenly sounded rather standoffish and said he would not need to be picked up.

Sitting watching it Digby was forced to confess that it did sound rather radical.

It sounded rather apologetic and explicitly underlined that it was nothing to do with Bagshaw.

As we look around the world, that might sound rather hollow.

Lebed, indeed, can sound rather restrained.

right

It's one of those Jabberwocky-type words that just sounds right .

Just then a foghorn sounded right clear.

He sounds right , politically and otherwise.

If it sounds right , it is right!

Q.. How do you know when a song sounds right ?

Forster reached for his mask, just as the hissing gas noise sounded right on top of him, ending with a little shriek.

And vice versa all those prepared speeches that look good on paper-they never sound right when read from a podium.

so

And anyway don't sound so surprised.

It sounds so much like the record.

Soloff has never sounded so good-his tone fat and full, his range phenomenal.

She had sounded so nice on the phone, not knowledgeable but pleasantly enthusiastic.

I feared that it sounded so small.

Ludens had sounded so moved, so stirred by some emotion.

Chords which would sound thick and dull on the piano do not sound so on the harp.

too

Without sounding too clichéd about it, there should be more to it than that.

Sure enough, they noticed an ad for a business opportunity that sounded too good to be true.

Sorry if I didn't sound too keen at first.

If it sounds too good to be true I assure you it's not.

But you might be surprised that it doesn't sound too bad either.

He was right in a way, it wouldn't sound too good in court.

very

Unless they were very good actors, they sounded very convincing to me when they said they were innocent.

It was starting to sound very familiar.

But it didn't sound very convincing; and I was afraid he wouldn't buy any of his pictures anywhere.

I know that sounds very childish and naive, but think about it.

It sounds very small in relation to the costs of war, but so do most budgets.

In such letters he sounded very much himself-direct, sincere, kind, and eager to dispel any possible misunderstanding.

That doesn't sound very nice.

In his recent appearances, Yeltsin has looked vigorous and sounded very much in charge.

■ NOUN

alarm

But video films of fires carried out on the test rig suggest that alarms will sound too late.

This alarm sounds like a gigantic pencil-sharpener grinding up something awful.

The alarm was sounded in time.

If temperatures rise too high or machine speeds fall too low, an alarm sounds a warning before the system breaks down.

A 12-hour alarm sounds off at your command.

The alarm bells had been sounded , the news was being fast disseminated.

She tensed; as if some buried defence had been touched by this ultimate surrender, some distant alarm bell sounded .

bell

The passing bell is sounding for the mass extinction of species.

Miss Bradley, first bell has sounded .

Even so, alarm bells are beginning to sound at Westminster.

A bell sounded in the church at Gushibov, either calling Gentiles to Mass or because they were carrying out a corpse.

A bell sounded somewhere in the house but there was no response.

We kissed, and every time the bell tower sounded , we listened attentively.

Swallows fought under the eaves outside the window, a lonely bell sounded , and Corbett heard faint shouts from the courtyard.

A fog bell sounds in the distance.

horn

The driver sounded his horn furiously as the taxi sped on.

To help the doggies along, Mercer sounds a horn that emits an ear-piercing wail from his plane.

Oscar sounded his deafening horn three times and the gates to the yard swung open.

In his failure to sound the horn in time there is tragedy, but it is not of a very complicated kind.

Santerre sounded the horn and led the excited hunters down the hill.

It is not permitted to sound a car horn after a certain hour.

Down in the drive some one was sounding a car horn .

The driver sounded his horn frantically.

note

Some retailers sounded a note of caution.

We may have to sound a warning note of challenge as well as minister a word of comfort.

Calvary's pipe organs are poised to sound somber notes of mourning for Earnhardt.

For example, a modulating theme may sound nonsensical without other notes which guide the harmonic flow.

When the plane crashed, it sounded a note that harmonized with the disaster of my early life.

Our third theme will, however, sound several notes of caution.

From somewhere in the valley, a trumpet sounded four wavering notes .

voice

I remember my tongue shedding its skin like a snake, my voice in the classroom sounding just like the rest.

He said that it hurt badly and that his voice sounded funny.

Robert Dexter obviously expected that shocked reaction because his voice sounded infinitely soothing, even formal.

Their voices sounded as if they should be coming from the mouths of cute, fuzzy characters on some Saturday morning cartoon.

As if it had been swallowed up.That was how that voice had sounded to him all those years ago.

His voice sounded a little hurt.

Her own voice sounded totally unlike her own, her mouth dry, her throat thick and choked with emotion.

Connors's voice sounded above the crackle of his own machine-gun fire.

warning

It is worth sounding a warning to those who are part of a tightly-knit family unit.

But its 1993 report sounded some warnings and suggested that governments consider advisory votes for controversial projects.

We may have to sound a warning note of challenge as well as minister a word of comfort.

If temperatures rise too high or machine speeds fall too low, an alarm sounds a warning before the system breaks down.

Reigning champions Denbighshire soared to a 118runs win over Merionethshire at Gwersyllt to sound an early warning to their challengers.

In the echoing stillness of the hall at Colcutt Manor it sounded like the four-minute warning .

■ VERB

begin

What was the trouble today? she wondered, as impatient horn blasts began to sound .

Then her phone calls became increasingly infrequent and she began to sound increasing remote.

Old Fakrid's hardly been gone two time units and already our clever First Pilot has begun to sound exactly like him.

Then the other two began to sound ragged.

We didn't make Abisko, chickening out as the weather worsened and the forecasts began to sound even more dire.

After a while it began to sound like Bill was just growing accustomed to getting a rise out of people.

The Big Three began sounding the alarm in a big way when January sales figures were reported.

hear

He heard what sounded like a stifled cry of pain from a shriller voice; then the commotion beside him resumed once more.

When I straightened up I heard a slight sound behind me.

I would like to hear it as it sounded while it was passing.

They heard what sounded like a blow.

I hear his play-flight sounds in the distance.

Then, through the rain, she heard a scratching sound , followed by a sharp, impatient bark.

Downriver, they heard what sounded like an avalanche.

make

Terribly difficult not to make it sound like a silly joke.

Kirilenko made it sound like a scholarly aside.

You make it sound as if we're about eighty.

They made him sound like a homicidal monster.

Dryden makes him sound a monument of dullness; in reality he is brisk, lively and journalistic.

She slid it along the counter toward him, making skidding sounds when it reached his arm.

I've not heard that for quite a while and its unfamiliarity makes it sound strange.

His eloquent description makes it sound like a building that any community would be proud to have in its midst.

try

When he tries to sound fiercer he sometimes sounds peevish or wheedling.

I asked, trying to sound chipper.

A crooner in a John Collier suit was trying to sound like Vince Hill.

I tried to sound assured, but her expression unnerved me.

Mr Annan tried to sound upbeat in the rest of his report.

Ralph tried to sound hearty and enthusiastic, but his voice struggled from him like a half-drowned river rat.

So I try to sound interested.

Mrs Boatwright tried to sound casual.

PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES

(hear the sound of) wedding bells

ambient music/sounds

raise/sound the alarm

Fred Goodyear was so shocked that it was more than eight hours before he raised the alarm .

He sounded the alarm and the train stopped at St-Pierre-des-Corps, near Tours.

He was one of the earliest to sound the alarm about the fate of churches and their contents.

Stewart dispatched a column sounding the alarm .

The Big Three began sounding the alarm in a big way when January sales figures were reported.

They have lost no time in sounding the alarm about an impending famine, which they say threatens 1.9m people.

Volcanologist Pierce Brosnan and small-town mayor Linda Hamilton sound the alarm .

When the First Lady looked in on him and discovered he was missing, she panicked and sounded the alarm .

sickening thud/crash/sound etc

Her heart took up a sickening thud.

One pitched out, hitting the ground with a sickening thud.

Then she landed on the Market Square flagstones with a sickening crash to lie motionless.

Then, with a sickening thud in her solar plexus, she understood.

They heard screams, kicks, the sickening thud of a punch, and the ogre roaring Solper's name.

the ghost of a smile/sound etc

the sound barrier

EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES

"We're all going clubbing tomorrow night." "That sounds like fun."

$50 sounds about right.

He sounds a pretty strange person.

I called my dad and told him what has happened. He sounded really angry.

If gas levels get too high, a warning bell will sound .

Istanbul sounds really exciting.

Jen sounded kind of tired on the phone.

Several earlier studies had sounded similar warnings.

That sounds pretty good to me.

The trip sounds really exciting.

EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS

Another process boils off the alcohol, which sounds painful.

I know that sounds very childish and naive, but think about it.

It sounds like the conceit of a Disney movie.

It sounds like the Sugarhill Gang must still be in Tokyo.

She had sounded so nice on the phone, not knowledgeable but pleasantly enthusiastic.

Your system sounds fine and will certainly support either a Coral Beauty or a Bicolor Angel.

III. adjective

COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS

■ ADVERB

ecologically

It's smart, effective, ecologically sound and it does pop in such a thirst-rousing way.

Governing bodies in Oakland, San Francisco and Berkeley approved resolutions urging the company to adopt ecologically sound procurement policies.

Working with nature is clearly practical, as well as ecologically sound .

They consider that unless the farming methods are tackled, no clothing industry can claim that its product is ecologically sound .

Improved public funding for ecologically sound land management was also discussed, as were criteria for reaching high environmental standards.

environmentally

Subsidies for production will gradually be replaced with green premium payments to promote environmentally sound management of the countryside.

One such factor is economic: Poor nations are simply unable to afford environmentally sound consumption and production practices.

The Guild consists of around 140 writers and winning projects have to be environmentally sound as well as contributing something to the local economy.

Developing countries need environmentally sound technologies to honour their sustainability commitments under the Convention.

Unlike the downhill sport, this is cheap and environmentally sound .

By keeping the tidal mudflats, the conservationists argue, the development will be both more imaginative and environmentally sound .

The decision on the channel tunnel rail link was environmentally sound .

financially

To qualify for membership, a company must prove that: it is established and financially sound .

It maintains that the amount has already been accounted for and that it remains financially sound .

Emphasis will be placed on identifying well-managed, financially sound growth companies in niche areas.

ideologically

They're ideologically sound , although sometimes they don't look it, know what I mean?

perfectly

There predicament is complicated by the far larger number of owners who can not sell perfectly sound concrete houses.

Still, given our fondness for gunning each other down, fearing the sight of blood seems perfectly sound .

Her ears, she claimed, were perfectly sound .

They're shallow and rather rough, but there's no smell of death or disease and they're perfectly sound .

His judgement was, after all, perfectly sound .

structurally

According to the board, Ocean Ranger was structurally sound and should have been able to weather the storm.

But a state judge ruled the buildings were structurally sound and allowed squatters to remain.

The authority insists that the two storey buildings are structurally sound and safe.

What you want to know is: Is the building structurally sound and weatherproof?

theoretically

The first criticism is that, although key settlement policies are theoretically sound , they have been poorly implemented in practice.

Such analysis provides is with a relatively precise, and theoretically sound methodology for dealing with perceivable changes in character.

very

The Prime Minister My hon. Friend makes a very sound point.

The reasoning was very sensible, the logic very sound , and it was fatefully wrong.

It could prove a very sound investment if he ever decides to sell it again.

A very sound investment compared to plasterboards of the same thickness.

Surely leasing or selling to Fulham would be very sound , Instead of being owners of a derelict ground.

Some people are very sound but can formulate opinions only after prolonged consideration.

However, despite some very sound features, the scheme foundered due to lack of organizational backing for its revision.

Bullen's reasons for doing this were actually very sound .

■ NOUN

advice

However, the market is highly specialised and it is important to operate only on the basis of sound advice .

Even when commenting on the poor service in the hotel he genuinely attempts to offer sound advice .

They have both made very substantial contributions to the progress of the Group and we will miss their sound advice .

Laura Lee's article was well balanced and gave sound advice on a variety of ways forward.

Any reader wanting the right detector to suit his pocket and plenty of sound advice is welcome to give me a ring.

Their quality of work is excellent and they offer good, sound advice .

The days when bank managers ranked with doctors in local communities because of sound advice and fair treatment of customers have long gone.

In his own inimitable style, Oz provides sound advice on best buys and stockists.

basis

We are satisfied that the Group's recommendations represent a sound basis for legislation and we propose no changes.

Yet, relations with Washington are on an extremely sound basis and there is a glimmer of improvement with Seoul.

Fear and anxiety, then, may have a sound basis .

Training in local government offers you a sound basis for career flexibility.

That is a sound basis for setting out to communicate, persuade, sell or argue.

There is a sound basis behind her success.

Here, the fact that a conflict of interest is abused is not in itself a sound basis for regulation.

This will be a sound basis for the School Development Plan described in the previous chapter.

business

Making a business succeed is not simple - even the best ideas and skills need detailed planning and sound business sense.

The owner must have either an established business desiring to expand or a sound business plan.

Educational assistance not only benefits the individual - it also makes sound business sense.

investment

Bricks and mortar used to much more than a sound investment - it was the best way to make serious money.

It could prove a very sound investment if he ever decides to sell it again.

A very sound investment compared to plasterboards of the same thickness.

Time spent on this aspect is a very sound investment in the ferrets' future performance.

It was a sound investment by Watford, because Wilkinson topped the club's scoring charts for three successive seasons.

It was really a sound investment , a first class mortgage, with very good security.

As a former building contractor, he had an eye for a sound investment in bricks and mortar.

judgement

He was also beginning to rely very heavily on her sound judgement on a number of things.

The important thing is to harness growth to self-knowledge, a ready acceptance of change, swift-moving business practice and sound judgement .

An elegant study, combining sound judgement of Trollope's characterisation with an excellent discursive style.

This is sound judgement but nothing beyond the reach of average mortals.

It was an entirely sound judgement .

policy

It would be a far sounder policy to run down western reprocessing.

Fifth, sound policy must address the provision of adequate, secure cycle parking.

principle

It is therefore necessary for nurses to base their practice on sound principles grounded in research.

It is exactly that willful abuse of discipline that will undermine an otherwise sound principle .

reason

There are sound reasons for using consultants.

There is a sound reason for rewording that clause, because that is too frequent an occurrence in day-to-day life in prison.

While obviously the fixed charge accords superior protection, there are sound reasons for taking a floating charge.

There were sound reasons for this view.

As long as a strong argument or sound reasons are given for your opinions they will stand on their own.

Unless there are sound reasons for so doing, it does not make sense to go outside the established channel.

There is a very sound reason for this provision.

As mentioned in the previous section, there are sound reasons for the slowdown in big-city population decline.

PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES

(hear the sound of) wedding bells

I don't want to sound/be ..., but ...

raise/sound the alarm

Fred Goodyear was so shocked that it was more than eight hours before he raised the alarm .

He sounded the alarm and the train stopped at St-Pierre-des-Corps, near Tours.

He was one of the earliest to sound the alarm about the fate of churches and their contents.

Stewart dispatched a column sounding the alarm .

The Big Three began sounding the alarm in a big way when January sales figures were reported.

They have lost no time in sounding the alarm about an impending famine, which they say threatens 1.9m people.

Volcanologist Pierce Brosnan and small-town mayor Linda Hamilton sound the alarm .

When the First Lady looked in on him and discovered he was missing, she panicked and sounded the alarm .

the ghost of a smile/sound etc

the sound barrier

EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES

A tense atmosphere is easy to create on stage with some sinister music and creepy sound effects.

Is recycling glass a sound idea?

The company offers sound financial advice to individuals and businesses.

The ear picks up sound waves and converts them into signals that it sends to the brain.

There is no sound reason for the closure of this factory.

EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS

At one minute before the start a sound signal is made.

Because he's sound , thought Mayta.

I believe that this trend will spread and that it is based on very sound educational grounds.

Pragmatism as a conception of law does not stipulate which of these various visions of good community are sound or attractive.

The importance of sound recruitment and selection can not therefore be overstressed.

There may on occasions be sound educational reasons for adopting a style of interaction in which unfocused questions predominate.

Throughout the eighties some officials displayed a tendency to overdo the latest idea, often itself not particularly sound .

IV. adverb

COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS

■ ADJECTIVE

asleep

And in minutes the old man was sound asleep .

And when he got back to his own hotel, Sabina had been sound asleep .

Then I fell sound asleep again.

He and your dad fell sound asleep in the same bed while I read aloud to them.

The minute she got into bed, she was sound asleep .

Most others are still sound asleep .

PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES

(hear the sound of) wedding bells

I don't want to sound/be ..., but ...

ambient music/sounds

raise/sound the alarm

Fred Goodyear was so shocked that it was more than eight hours before he raised the alarm .

He sounded the alarm and the train stopped at St-Pierre-des-Corps, near Tours.

He was one of the earliest to sound the alarm about the fate of churches and their contents.

Stewart dispatched a column sounding the alarm .

The Big Three began sounding the alarm in a big way when January sales figures were reported.

They have lost no time in sounding the alarm about an impending famine, which they say threatens 1.9m people.

Volcanologist Pierce Brosnan and small-town mayor Linda Hamilton sound the alarm .

When the First Lady looked in on him and discovered he was missing, she panicked and sounded the alarm .

sickening thud/crash/sound etc

Her heart took up a sickening thud.

One pitched out, hitting the ground with a sickening thud.

Then she landed on the Market Square flagstones with a sickening crash to lie motionless.

Then, with a sickening thud in her solar plexus, she understood.

They heard screams, kicks, the sickening thud of a punch, and the ogre roaring Solper's name.

the ghost of a smile/sound etc

the sound barrier

Longman DOCE5 Extras English vocabulary.      Дополнительный английский словарь Longman DOCE5.