susurrus

English

WOTD – 17 July 2009    

Etymology

Onomatopoeic; from Latin susurrus (“a humming, whispering”); likely from an older echoic word.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /ˈsuː.sə.ɹəs/
• (US) IPA: /ˈsu.sə.ɹəs/, /səˈsəɹ.əs/

Noun

susurrus (plural susurruses)

1. (literary) A whispering or rustling sound; a murmur.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of De Quincey to this entry?)

   The soft susurrus and sighs of the branches. — Longfellow.

   • 2004, Gregory David Roberts, Shantaram: A Novel, ISBN 0312330529, page 613:

     I sipped at a drink and smoked cigarettes in a silence so profound that I could hear the susurrus of the blindfold's soft fabric rustle and slip between my fingers.

   • 2008, Neil Gaiman, The Graveyard Book, ISBN 0060530928, page 262:

     Bod could feel the Sleer listening to Jack's words, could feel a low susurrus of excitement building in the chamber.

Related terms

• insusurration
• susurrant, susurrous
• susurrate
• susurration

Translations

whispering or rustling sound

• Finnish: kahina (fi), rahina (fi), rapina (fi)
• Latin: susurrus (la) m

• Spanish: susurro (es) m

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Latin

Noun

susurrus (genitive susurrī); m, second declension

1. whisper
2. murmur

Inflection

Number	Singular	Plural
nominative	susurrus	susurrī
genitive	susurrī	susurrōrum
dative	susurrō	susurrīs
accusative	susurrum	susurrōs
ablative	susurrō	susurrīs
vocative	susurre	susurrī