cacophony
UK[kəˈkɒfəni]US[kəˈkɑːfəni]
n
an unpleasant mixture of loud sounds.
n
a harsh, jarring, discordant mixture of sounds.
Morpheme Breakdown
caco
phony
caco
bad
phony
sound
Etymology
the word cacophony is a direct borrowing from the french 'cacophonie', which itself originates from the greek 'kakophōnia'. this greek compound is formed from 'kakos' (bad) and 'phōnē' (sound, voice). the term entered english in the mid-17th century, originally used in rhetoric to describe a poor combination of words or sounds. its logic is transparently literal: a "bad sound." over time, its application broadened from linguistic criticism to describe any harsh, jarring, and discordant noise, perfectly preserving the original semantic link between its constituent parts.
Analysis
Structure: caco (bad) + phony (sound)
caco (from greek 'kakos', meaning bad, harsh) + phony (from greek 'phōnē', meaning sound, voice)
Examples
the cacophony of car horns and sirens filled the city street.
the piece of music was deliberately written to create a sense of cacophony.
a sudden cacophony erupted from the playground as the children began to play.