onomatopoeic

The “boom” of a cannon (note of a bell, cry of the bittern) is distinct from this, being onomatopoeic.

In the vernacular the point is brought out by the onomatopoeic character of the lines, which cannot be rendered in English.

The English word may be of native origin and merely onomatopoeic.

With onomatopoeic effects it gives a vivid if unfriendly picture of a blacksmith's forge on a busy night.

In Language, its Origin and Development , he upholds the onomatopoeic theory.