Surd

[sә:d]

Definition

(noun.) a consonant produced without sound from the vocal cords.

Editor: Samantha--From WordNet

Definition

(a.) Net having the sense of hearing; deaf.

(a.) Unheard.

(a.) Involving surds; not capable of being expressed in rational numbers; radical; irrational; as, a surd expression or quantity; a surd number.

(a.) Uttered, as an element of speech, without tone, or proper vocal sound; voiceless; unintonated; nonvocal; atonic; whispered; aspirated; sharp; hard, as f, p, s, etc.; -- opposed to sonant. See Guide to Pronunciation, //169, 179, 180.

(n.) A quantity which can not be expressed by rational numbers; thus, Ã2 is a surd.

(n.) A surd element of speech. See Surd, a., 4.

Edited by Ivan

Synonyms and Synonymous

a. [1]. (Math.) Radical, incommensurable.[2]. (Orthoëpy.) Aspirate, toneless, unintonated, atonic, not sonant, not vocal, without vocality, pronounced with a simple breathing.

Edited by Guthrie

Definition

adj. (alg.) involving surds: produced by the action of the speech organs on the breath (not the voice) as the 'hard' sounds k t p f &c.: deaf: (obs.) unheard senseless.—n. (alg.) a quantity inexpressible by rational numbers or which has no root.—ns. Surdimū′tism the condition of being deaf and dumb; Surd′ity want of sonant quality.

Typist: Robinson