Onomatopoeia is the word that describes those words who sound like the sounds they describe. As the song goes, it’s “sort of zoom, zip, hiccup, drip
Ding, dong, crunch, crack, bark, meow, whinnie, quack.” But I think we need a word for words that sounds like what they mean. Take diaphanous, for example. Diaphanous usually is used to refer to sheer fabrics, but to me, the word even sounds diaphanous. Isn’t there something sort of light and feminine of the “dis” leading into the soft and delicate sound of “phan” that rolls in to whispery soft “pus.” Of course a word that sounds like that has to mean delicate, light, ethereal.

The Splash (onomatopoeia) dress from SySy’s is diaphanous. Its layers are sheer as cobwebs, a gossamer confection of sheer fabric floating over another layers of fabric and falling like a spindrift on the waves of the ocean. The ombre silver to green color of the fabric adds to the seafoam delicacy as to the waves suggested by the hemline.

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