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twang

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twang

  • /ˈtwæŋ/
  • [ˈtʰwæŋ]
  • /ˈtweɪ̯ŋ/ Canada, US
  • [ˈtʰweɪ̯ŋ] ~ /ˈtwɛ̃ŋ/ Canada, US
  • [ˈtʰwɛ̃ŋ] Canada, US

Rhymes with -æŋ

Where it comes from

Onomatopoeic. Compare Middle English twengen (“to pinch, tweak”) (whence modern English twinge), from Old English twenġan (“to pinch, twinge”); Middle English twingen (“to afflict, torment, oppress”), from Old Norse þvinga (“to weigh down, oppress”); Old English twingan (“to force, press”).

noun twangs

  1. The sharp, quick sound of a vibrating tight string, for example, of a bow or a musical instrument. Let me give you in rude recitation, with here and there a twang and a caper of the guitar-strings, my vision of the Cid's sally from his besieged castle of Alcocer—the first outburst of that Spanish deluge that never receded till it rose over the dead body of the last Moor.
  2. A particular sharp vibrating sound characteristic of electric guitars.
  3. A trace of a regional or foreign accent in someone's voice. Despite having lived in Canada for 20 years, he still has that Eastern European twang in his voice.
  4. The sound quality that appears in the human voice when the epilaryngeal tube is narrowed. Near-synonym: nasality

    Similar: nasality

  5. A sharp, pungent taste or flavor; sometimes, a disagreeable one specifically. spicy twang

    Similar: tang

  6. slang, vulgar An annoying or stupid person; especially, a recalcitrant.

verb twangs · twanging · twanged

  1. ambitransitive To produce or cause to produce a sharp vibrating sound, like a tense string pulled and suddenly let go.
  2. intransitive To have a nasal sound.
  3. intransitive To have a trace of a regional or foreign accent.
  4. To play a stringed musical instrument by plucking and snapping.

Translations

Every language

noun nasal speech

Españolgangosidad

noun sound of a tight string

DeutschNäseln
Românăzbârnâit, vibrație, zumzet

verb to produce or cause to produce a sharp vibrating sound

Deutschzupfen
Românăzbârnâi, zumzăi, vibra

verb to have a nasal sound

Deutschnäseln
Românănazaliza

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Cite this
MLA

"twang." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/twang. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

twang. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/twang

Chicago

"twang." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/twang.

BibTeX
@misc{twang_2026,
  title = {twang},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/twang},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}