earsplitting

C2+ Topic:Senses & Perception

Also spelled ear-splitting

US /ˈɪrˌsplɪtɪŋ/ UK /ˈɪəˌsplɪtɪŋ/ See IPA manual

adj

Meanings

1

adj
extremely loud and harsh to the ear

The jet's earsplitting roar drowned out every other sound.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · extremely loud and harsh to... deafeningpiercingblaringthunderous shrill booming strident

Opposites

quiet soft muffled faint

Word family

Related forms ear split

Etymology

A compound of 'ear' + 'splitting', conveying a noise so loud it seems to split the ear. 'Ear' is from Old English 'ēare'; 'split' is from Middle Dutch 'splitten'.

ēare Old English splitten Middle Dutch

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Senses & Perception Word Formation & Derivatives

# earsplitting

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** ˈɪrˌsplɪtɪŋ
**IPA (UK):** ˈɪəˌsplɪtɪŋ

## Meanings
1. extremely loud and harsh to the ear

## Examples
- The jet's earsplitting roar drowned out every other sound.

## Synonyms
- deafening
- piercing
- blaring
- thunderous
- shrill
- booming
- strident

## Antonyms
- quiet
- soft
- muffled
- faint

## Related Forms
- ear
- split

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: ēare
- Root: splitten

## Etymology
A compound of 'ear' + 'splitting', conveying a noise so loud it seems to split the ear. 'Ear' is from Old English 'ēare'; 'split' is from Middle Dutch 'splitten'.

## AI Etymology
Earsplitting is a compound of 'ear' + 'splitting', conveying a noise so loud it seems to split the ear. 'Ear' is from Old English 'ēare'; 'split' is from Middle Dutch 'splitten'. The ancestry passes through Old English ēare and Middle Dutch splitten. In present use as an adjective, it means "extremely loud and harsh to the ear", keeping the historical formation close to the word's ordinary semantic work. As a compound, its meaning is assembled from the two visible parts rather than from an opaque borrowing. Related words include ear and split.

## Topics
- Senses & Perception
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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earsplitting

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