- Voices can be described by their volume. For example, "booming" and "feathery" are ways to describe loud and quiet voices.
- Some adjectives help describe a voice's tone and pitch; "monotone" and "shrill," for instance.
- You can also describe how someone's voice affects others. "Soporific" voices put people to sleep, and "hypnotic" voices hold them in a trance.
Adenoidal
Adenoidal voices are nasally, and mainly come through the nose. Use this to describe a voice that sounds unpleasant, forced, and breathy. Example: “I couldn’t focus on what he was actually saying, just his annoying, adenoidal voice.”
Angelic
Angelic voices are thought to be inherently good and kind. This can reflect inherent qualities of the speaker; or, this can also be a voice that just naturally raises the spirits of people around them. Example: “They spoke to us in an angelic voice, and we trusted everything they had to say because of it.”
Animated
Animated voices are lively and clearly show the speaker's feelings. Select this adjective when you’re describing someone excitable or in an engaging or intense conversation. Example: “Listening to her animated voice, I knew she was really passionate about the topic at hand.”
Booming
Booming voices refer to loud, sometimes deep voices. These are the kinds of voices that can immediately cut through the noise. Example: “The camp counselor knew that her booming voice would get the kid’s attention.”
Brittle
Brittle voices are hard, sharp, and fragile sounding. Use this to describe someone’s voice when they’re on the verge of tears. Example: “The little boy’s hands were shaking and he responded in a brittle voice: 'I don’t want to go to bed yet.'"
Croaky
Croaky voices are low, rough, and maybe a little hoarse. People with croaky voices might sound like they have sandpaper in the back of their throats. Example: “Their voice was so croaky, it made them sound 10 years older than they actually were.”
Crisp
Crisp voices are clear sounding, quick, and efficient. You might describe someone’s voice as “crisp” if they have excellent annunciation; or, on the other hand, you might use “crisp” for someone no-nonsense and to the point. Example: “Her speaking voice was so beautiful and crisp—you could tell she’d spent years doing theater.” Example: “He gave the directions quickly in a crisp voice; he wasn’t messing around.”
Ethereal
Ethereal voices have a heavenly quality. This can mean different things to different people, but typically, ethereal voices are pleasant, airy, soft, and beautiful. Example: “I’m so excited for the Weyes Blood concert this weekend. Her voice is the definition of ethereal!”
Feathery
Feathery voices are thin, soft, and airy. Use this to describe someone quiet, with a thin and wispy quality of voice. Example: “With his feathery voice, I could hardly hear him speak above the noise.”
Flat
Flat voices are monotone and emotionless. Use this adjective to describe a boring voice that might just put its audience to sleep. Example: “If my professor’s voice gets any flatter, I’m going to start nodding off in lecture.”
Grating
Grating voices are extremely harsh and annoying. Use this word for someone who’s like your alarm clock personified—they’re horrible to listen to. Example: “Though I agree entirely with the politician’s stance, their voice is so grating—I don’t know if I could listen to this for 4 years…”
Gravelly
Gravelly voices are low, rough, and raspy. Use this voice for someone who has a tough-sounding, baritone voice. Example: “The cowboy looked across the saloon and, in a gravelly voice, said: 'This town ain’t big enough for the both of us.'”
Hoarse
Hoarse voices are raspy, strained, and thin-sounding. Select this word to describe someone’s sick voice, for example. “Hoarse” is unlike “croaky” or “gravelly,” because it’s associated with quieter, weaker voices. Example: “Their hoarse voice piped up from the bed, 'I’m really not feeling well—could you grab me some water?'”
Honeyed
Honeyed voices are pleasant, gentle, and sweet. Sometimes this word is also used to describe someone whose "kind" voice is insincere or phony. Example: “Her voice was honeyed while company was still hanging around, but I knew the second they left, she’d start yelling.”
Husky
Husky voices are low and hoarse—often in an attractive way. Use this for someone whose lower, raspy voice gets them noticed by other people. Example: “Even though I knew we could never be together, her husky voice was so hard to resist.”
Hypnotic
Hypnotic voices put audiences in a trance. For whatever reason, these voices completely grab the attention of their audience—it could be charisma, clear vocal quality, anything. Example: “Her hypnotic voice grabbed me immediately. When my best friend got up to leave, I didn’t even notice.”
Mellifluous
Mellifluous voices are sweet, smooth, and musical. Use this word to describe someone’s voice if it’s noticeably pleasing to the ear. Example: “I fell in love with him the second he spoke to me—his voice was mellifluous.”
Modulated
Modulated voices are purposefully adjusted, usually to be clearer. Use this word when a speaker thoughtfully tweaks their voice’s tone and tempo in an effort to sound pleasing or understandable. Example: “They spoke with a modulated voice and passionately argued for climate change reform—I knew that the whole audience was moved.”
Monotonous
Monotonous voices are flat, meaning that they rarely vary in tone. Choose this word when you’re describing a voice that could belong to a robot—it’s so boring that listeners might find it annoying. Example: “As he continued telling his long story in a monotonous voice, I hit my wit's end: 'I’m going to go to the bathroom!'”
Orotund
Orotund voices are strong and clear—sometimes even pompous. Use this adjective when someone’s speaking voice is convincing, confident, and rich. It might even spill into overconfidence. Example: “Their orotund voice made for an amazing toast, though it did feel like they were talking down to us at times.”
Penetrating
Penetrating voices are disruptive, loud, and high-pitched. Choose this word to describe a scream, or a voice with high volume that makes others uncomfortable. Example: “Her penetrating scream was heard all the way from the next neighborhood.”
Plummy
Plummy voices sound posh, formal, and upper-class. Note that in most cases, “plummy” is used in a negative way, to poke fun at or criticize the speaker. Example: “I’ve heard just about enough of her plummy voice; who does she think she is?”
Raucous
Raucous voices are loud, harsh, and disruptive. Use this description for someone whose voice hits high volumes, but is agitating. Example: “He’s so rowdy. That raucous voice is going to get him into trouble one of these days.”
Resonant
Resonant voices have a deep tone and a lasting effect. Use this word to describe someone’s voice if it’s strong and hard to shake. Example: “My teacher told me that I have a resonant voice, so they suggested I join the speech team.”
Shrill
Shrill voices are high-pitched, sharp, and at times, unpleasant. Use this word to describe someone’s voice that’s like a squeal or a squeak—it might make you want to cover your ears. Example: “They blathered on in a shrill voice for hours; I left their house needing an Advil.”
Silvery
Silvery voices are clear, light, and pleasant. They might also have a slightly soft, high, or musical tone. Example: “As I listened to him speak in that gorgeous, silvery voice, I thought about how he’d be a great podcast host.”
Singsong
Singsong voices rise and fall in pitch in a beautiful way. Choose this word when someone has a noticeably rhythmical way of speaking. Example: “She told the fairytale to kids in a singsong voice that had them all on the edges of their seats.”
Soporific
Soporific voices cause people to sleep involuntarily. This could be for any number of reasons. The person’s voice may be relaxing, boring, or warm—but if it causes people to nod off, it’s soporific. Example: “His singing voice was soporific. Sitting by the campfire, I felt like I could fall asleep to his melodies.”
Stentorian
Stentorian voices are loud and obtrusive. Use this word when someone’s voice is booming and deep—some of the time, “stentorian” is used when a person’s voice is louder than it should be. Example: “The whole room was chattering until she clapped her hands twice and spoke in a stentorian voice: 'Listen up!'”
Taut
Taut voices are tightly-drawn and strained sounding. Typically, a taut voice implies that someone is nervous, stressed, or angry. Example: “When I heard his taut voice, I knew that the stain I left on his jacket bothered him more than he’d let on.”
Throaty
Throaty voices are thick and heavy—like they come from deep down. Just like a nasally voice seems to come from the nose, a throaty voice sounds like it’s coming from the bottom of a person’s throat. Example: “His throaty laugh was so unique, I could recognize it anywhere.”
Tremulous
Tremulous voices are shaking slightly. Use this word to describe someone’s voice when it’s noticeably quavering, especially because of uncertainty or nerves. Example: “My coach’s tremulous voice made me question her confidence in us—did she think we were going to lose our lead?”
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