resonance

resonance — noun

1. a deep, strong, and pleasing clarity in a sound that makes it easy to hear and p

1.nounB2
Definition

a deep, strong, and pleasing clarity in a sound that makes it easy to hear and pleasant to listen to — for example, the quality of a well-trained singing voice or a well-made musical instrument.

Example

The actor's deep voice had a natural resonance that filled the theatre without a microphone.

collocation: natural resonance

Bao adjusted the guitar strings until the sound had the warm resonance he wanted for the concert.

Common collocations
  • deep resonance
  • rich resonance
  • natural resonance
  • warm resonance
Synonyms
  • resoundingness

    much less common; more literal

  • sonority

    more formal; used mainly for voices and musical tones

  • richness

    broader meaning — can describe colour, texture, or flavour, not just sound

Antonyms

Common Mistakes

The singer's voice had a loud resonance that hurt my ears.
The singer's voice had a rich resonance that echoed through the hall.
'Resonance' suggests pleasant depth and clarity, not unpleasant loudness.

2. a physical process in which an object picks up energy from sound waves or vibrat

2.nounC1
Definition

a physical process in which an object picks up energy from sound waves or vibrations at a matching frequency, causing it to shake and produce a stronger or longer-lasting sound itself.

Example

Dario tapped a tuning fork near a piano string, and the string began to shake — a clear case of resonance.

demonstrates: vibration transferred at matching frequency

The bridge was built with special dampers to prevent resonance from wind or traffic at certain frequencies.

technical context: prevent resonance in engineering

Common collocations
  • mechanical resonance
  • acoustic resonance
  • resonance frequency
  • frequency of resonance
Synonyms
  • sympathetic vibration

    more precise technical term for the same phenomenon

  • oscillation

    broader — any back-and-forth motion, not necessarily frequency-matched

  • amplification

    more general — any increase in strength, not specific to sound

Antonyms
  • damping

    reduction or suppression of vibration

Usage Note

Common in physics, engineering, and music contexts. The term is almost always paired with 'frequency' — resonance happens when two objects share or nearly share a natural frequency. The countable form ('a resonance') is used when referring to a specific resonant frequency or mode.

Common Mistakes

The guitar string had resonance when I touched it lightly.
The guitar string had resonance when I played the same note on another guitar nearby.
Resonance requires matching frequencies from a separate source, not just touching the object.

3. the power of a story, song, film, or speech to stir up strong personal feelings,

3.nounB2
Definition

the power of a story, song, film, or speech to stir up strong personal feelings, memories, or thoughts — the sense that the work connects deeply with the person experiencing it.

Example

The novel about migration had a strong resonance for Iris, whose grandparents had moved to a new country themselves.

collocation: have a resonance for somebody

The old photograph of her grandmother's village had unexpected emotional resonance for Manuela, bringing back summers she had almost forgotten.

collocation: emotional resonance

Common collocations
  • emotional resonance
  • cultural resonance
  • personal resonance
  • political resonance
  • have resonance for
  • find resonance among
Synonyms
  • emotional impact

    broader — any strong emotional effect, not necessarily the 'connecting deeply' quality

  • poignancy

    more specific — a sad or bittersweet emotional quality

  • meaningfulness

    focuses on significance rather than emotional stir

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

have a resonance for someone

find resonance among

Usage Note

Often used with have, find, or create/carry. The subject is typically an artwork, speech, or story; the person who experiences the connection is introduced by for or among. Unlike sense 1 and 2, this sense is almost never countable.

Common Mistakes

The movie had resonance to me.
The movie had resonance for me.
The correct preposition is 'for', not 'to'.
The book had a huge resonance on readers.
The book had a strong resonance among readers.
Use 'for' or 'among', not 'on'.

Word family

  • resonate
    verbB2
  • resonant
    adjectiveB2
  • resonantly
    adverbC1
  • resonator
    nounC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/3

Resonance, significance, impact, and relevance all describe the importance or effect of something, but they focus on different aspects. Resonance (sense 3) emphasises a personal, emotional, or intellectual connection — a poem has resonance if it makes you feel something deeply or reminds you of your own experience. Significance points to the importance or meaning of something, often measured objectively — for example, a scientific discovery may have great significance for medicine. Impact highlights the forceful effect or tangible change something causes — a new law can have a major impact on small businesses. Relevance connects to the current situation or the person's immediate concerns — advice has little relevance if it does not apply to your problem. Use resonance when you want to describe an emotional or imaginative connection; use significance for factual importance; use impact for measurable results; and use relevance for practical applicability to a topic.

resonance ↗significance ↗impact ↗relevance ↗

Common collocations

Prepositions

  • resonance of
  • resonance with

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Resonance entered English from French in the 1400s, originally meaning 'echo'. It comes from Latin resonantia, which is built from resonare — a combination of re- ('again') and sonare ('to sound'). The core idea of 'sounding again' runs through all three modern senses: a voice ringing out clearly, an object vibrating in response to a sound, or a story stirring feelings that echo inside the listener.