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vocal

[voh-kuhl]

Example Sentences Origin

adjective

of, pertaining to, or uttered with the voice: the vocal mechanism; vocal criticism.

rendered by or intended for singing: vocal music.

having a voice: A dog is a vocal, but not a verbal, being.

giving forth sound with or as with a voice.

inclined to express oneself in words, especially copiously or insistently: a vocal advocate of reform.

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Phonetics.

vocalic (def. 1).

voiced.

COLLAPSE

noun

a vocal sound.

a musical piece for a singer, usually with instrumental accompaniment. Compare instrumental (def. 6).

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Vocal is always a great word to know.

So is stress. Does it mean:

to pronounce with prominent loudness

to change the pronunciation of (a stop) to an affricate, esp. by releasing (the stop) slowly.

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Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin vōcālis, equivalent to vōc- (stem of vōx) voice + -ālis -al¹

Related forms

vo·cal·i·ty

[voh-kal-i-tee] , vo·cal·ness, noun

vo·cal·ly, adverb

non·vo·cal, adjective, noun

non·vo·cal·ly, adverb

non·vo·cal·ness, noun

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non·vo·cal·i·ty, noun

COLLAPSE

Synonyms
5. vociferous, outspoken.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To vocal

Example Sentences

Use the same body language and vocal cues you would use when discussing your favorite research or pie recipe.

But in the aftermath of the crisis, industrial policy has gathered some vocal champions.

The red-faced monkeys frequently utter what researchers have dubbed coo calls to maintain vocal contact with one another.

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Use the same body language and vocal cues you would use when discussing your favorite research or pie recipe.

But in the aftermath of the crisis, industrial policy has gathered some vocal champions.

The red-faced monkeys frequently utter what researchers have dubbed coo calls to maintain vocal contact with one another.

Most animal vocal cords are triangular, but the uniquely stretchable square cords of the big cats let them produce their.

The size of the animal or the vocal fold, or the frequency of the sound, didn't matter.

Birds, amphibians and mammals often use hard-to-discern sounds to add an extra layer of vocal information.

But he did receive one piece of good news: vocal support from a prominent board member.

Gonzales's agent after vocal protests from their peers and professors.

Even though birds sing and bees dance, nothing in nature matches a human's richly complicated system of vocal communication.

Scientists behind the discovery say elephants are capable of vocal imitation and.

When judged by its size, our vocal system fails to impress as a musical instrument.

Elk have vocal folds about the same size, but they make high-pitched sounds.

As you sing you vocal pitch is then matched to the target notes.

One vocal cord was paralyzed, and his usual baritone was reduced to a weak, breathy whisper.

Listening alone is not enough--a vocal coach is necessary.

Representing a fifth of parliament, they have been vocal opponents of the regime.

Most animals make throat-based sounds using only their vocal folds.

Pro saxophonists contort their vocal tracts to climb the upper registers.

Bonobo's can't physically speak as their vocal cords are different to ours.

Apple's insistence on secrecy meant that developers were cut off from their air supply: a large and vocal group of beta testers.

The chart-topping singer has been plagued by vocal problems much of the year.

There are many ironies in the vocal outcry against the law.

Just as critics of economic policy are having a greater say, supporters are no less vocal.

Many animals have been observed using simple vocal signals among themselves.

But why is this ability to learn a vocal communication.

My cats prefer vocal volume as their primary weapon.

In more than two-thirds of subjects in a study, whispering put more strain on the vocal cords than normal speech.

The move came despite vocal opposition from many students and families.

And the company's size, success and ways of doing business have won it some vocal enemies.

Vocal music lies at the center of all maqâm traditions.

The physical and vocal tics, which can alienate kids from peers, are difficult to treat.

But expect insurers to be more vocal about climate-change-related risks this year.

The next morning she went to her doctor and her hunch was right: she had hemorrhaged in one of her vocal cords.

There is a wide range of vocal disorders, and many of them are treatable and even curable.

Britain's small but vocal freedom-of-information lobby has given the plans a cautious welcome.

Today a vocal minority is complicating the picture by suggesting that the die-off could have been more gradual.

The physics involved in the art of vocal destruction seem straightforward enough.

More telling, one of the people tapped to head the review was a vocal war critic early.

Vibration of the vocal cords is essential for good voice and speech.

Learn to use your diaphragm, and vocal variety is yours.

But he also knew that a vocal opposition would hold up his attempts to change any of these rules.

He plays his fine vocal instrument with great sweetness, yet there is an undercurrent of sadness.

Other studies have shown that rhythmic vocal recitations enhance cardiovascular activity.

But they have loyal adherents, vocal critics and pretty much.

She is a vocal actress of sensitivity, and much of her vocal quality is pleasing.

The other was quite vocal on the subject of protesting taxes.

There will be plenty of losers, many with vocal lobbies.

The new chimp finding, however, may be the first evidence of great apes using vocal communication.

Speaking of secrets and lies: the contribution of ventrolateral prefrontal cortex to vocal deception.

It was unrelated to him being a vocal opponent of the district and making comments in the local press, the court said.

Tan's exotic harmonies and elusive vocal lines enticing.

As a rule, the more vocal an author against a tyrant, the greater the accolades.

Locals say that they also cut out the vocal cords of a singer who had warbled improvised anti-regime ditties in previous weeks.

But with its heartbeatlike pulse, vocal fireworks and message of universal.

Yes, bad hearing might be at fault, but poor control of the vocal system is another possible factor.

People will always complain, but they are a vocal minority.

Eisman, who made a fortune betting against subprime mortgages, has emerged recently as a vocal critic of for-profit colleges.

But producer lobbies tend to be more vocal than consumers.

Crocodiles do not have any vocal chords, so noise is made by pushing air through the throat and nostrils.

He needed a species that didn't necessarily listen to music, but still had a rich vocal repertoire.

One of the best ways to fight splogs is to be vocal about them.

Varying your dynamics and vocal inflection can help your listeners engage your argument.

The number of vocal deflation worriers is quite close to a majority.

But the band needed singers, a robust vocal outfit to tame the music's feisty bucking.

The high velocity of the airflow is achieved by the buildup of pressure inside the chest with the vocal chords closed.

Because it is written, it is silent and therefore less threatening than a vocal mob.

Workers tend to be better organised and more vocal than consumers.

Previous attempts to teach chimpanzees to imitate vocal languages had failed.

The vagus nerve is thought to stimulate certain muscles in the vocal chamber, enabling communication.

Other students seem to disagree with the vocal group, but also stay seated.

Religious people are getting more vocal in all sorts of fields, including business.

There are dads who incubate their babies in their mouths, their vocal sacs, and in pouches.

Creationists are awefully vocal on posts such as this.

It's pretty clear the decision came in response to the vocal opposition of a lot of wealthy, well-connected gay people.

They wanted to add a distinctly local element to their largely borrowed vocal sound.

The news was met with vocal protests, from citizens and government officials, and the plans have now been cancelled.

Students will feel the vibration from their vocal cords.

The ability to mimic the gestures and vocal tones of those you are trying to convince.

In the blues, as he shows, the singer's vocal timbre drives the emotional impact of the song as much as the lyrics.

Or perhaps the left brain's capacity for controlling manual action extended to controlling the vocal apparatus for speech.

We need a more vocal scientific community speaking truth to the people and to governments about this crisis.

Only a small, vocal and problematic group of men belittle women so coarsely.

The proliferation of books and blogs by vocal atheists made the topic acceptable in the public sphere.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

vocal (ˈvəʊk^əl)

—*adj*
1.	of, relating to, or designed for the voice: vocal music
2.	produced or delivered by the voice: vocal noises
3.	connected with an attribute or the production of the voice: vocal organs
4.	frequently disposed to outspoken speech, criticism, etc: a vocal minority
5.	full of sound or voices: a vocal assembly
6.	endowed with a voice
7.	eloquent or meaningful
8.	phonetics
	a. of or relating to a speech sound
	b. of or relating to a voiced speech sound, esp a vowel

—n
9.	a piece of jazz or pop music that is sung
10.	a performance of such a piece of music

[C14: from Latin vōcālis possessed of a voice, from vōx voice]

vocality

—n

'vocally

—*adv*

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source

Etymonline

Word Origin & History

vocal

late 14c., "spoken, oral," from O.Fr. vocal, from L. vocalis "sounding, sonorous, speaking," as a noun, "a vowel," from vox (gen. vocis) "voice" (see voice). In reference to music (as opposed to instrumental), first recorded 1580s; meaning "outspoken" first attested 1871.

American Heritage

Medical Dictionary

vocal vo·cal (vō'kəl)
adj.

Of or relating to the voice.
Capable of emitting sound or speech.

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Matching Quote

"The world,—this shadow of the soul, or other me, lies wide around. Its attractions are the keys which unlock my thoughts and make me acquainted with myself. I run eagerly into this resounding tumult. I grasp the hands of those next to me, and take my place in the ring to suffer and to work, taught by an instinct, that so shall the dumb abyss be vocal with speech."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

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