sing
pronunciation
How to pronounce sing in British English:
UK [sɪŋ]
How to pronounce sing in American English:
US [sɪŋ]
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- Verb:
- deliver by singing
- produce tones with the voice
- to make melodious sounds
- make a whining, ringing, or whistling sound
- divulge confidential information or secrets
Word Origin
- sing
- sing: [OE] Sing is a general Germanic word, related to German singen, Dutch zingen, Swedish sjunga, and Danish synge, and of course to the noun song. It is thought that it may have distant links with Greek omphé ‘voice’ and Welsh dehongli ‘explain, interpret’.=> song
- sing (v.)
- Old English singan "to chant, sing, celebrate, or tell in song," also used of birds (class III strong verb; past tense sang, past participle sungen), from Proto-Germanic *sengwan (cognates: Old Saxon singan, Old Frisian sionga, Middle Dutch singhen, Dutch zingen, Old High German singan, German singen, Gothic siggwan, Old Norse syngva, Swedish sjunga), from PIE root *sengwh- "to sing, make an incantation." The criminal slang sense of "to confess to authorities" is attested from 1610s. No related forms in other languages, unless perhaps it is connected to Greek omphe "voice" (especially of a god), "oracle;" and Welsh dehongli "explain, interpret." The typical Indo-European root is represented by Latin canere (see chant (v.)). Other words meaning "sing" derive from roots meaning "cry, shout," but Irish gaibim is literally "take, seize," with sense evolution via "take up" a song or melody.
- sing (n.)
- "act of singing," especially collective, 1850, from sing (v.).
Example
- 1. Ms. duncan agreed to play piano and sing alto .
- 2. Do you play an instrument or sing ?
- 3. And sing aloud in the splendor of starlight .
- 4. But I think it 's obvious . They want to sing on broadway .
- 5. Like many people , birds sing to show off .