SIGHTS and SOUNDS are the things you see and hear. SOUND and NOISE are both general terms that designate sensations excited in the ear.
Sound 與 Voice 意思不同
SOUND 比較籠統，表示任何聽得到的聲音或響聲，如樹林中的風聲，隣居狗吠的聲音。 You do not use words like ‘much’ or ‘a lot’ with sound。 而 NOISE 則通常指不和諧、不悅耳的噪音或雜聲，例如怒吼聲 the noise of angry shouting: Try not to make so much noise 別那麼吵吵閙閙；What a terrible noise 多麼令人討厭的噪音。NOISE is generally applied to all loud, confused, or irritating sounds. Loud noise is harsh, sharp, shrill, or strident : the noise of a vacuum cleaner 吸塵機發出的吵耳聲。
VOICE 指人的說話聲或唱歌聲，聲量有高有低，噪音有雄壯的、渾厚的、圓潤的、低沉的。We speak in a deep/soft/loud/quiet voice. Singers with treble voice can be high-pitched. Low voice is deep or dark; loud voice is strong or robust；大聲而刺耳的 loud and irritating voice is sharp, harsh, piercing or ear-splitting；動聽而優美的 pleasant voice is soothing, melodious, sweet, mellifluous, silken, soft or honeyed-voiced；單調的噪音 voice without intonation is flat, expressionless and monotonous。
動物發出的聲音，英文有不同的叫法：
dogs bark, cats purr, lions roar, wolf howl, elephants trumpet, horses neigh, pigs grunt, monkeys chatter, donkeys bray, cows moo, sheep bleat, ducks quack, hens cluck, cocks crow, frogs croak, snakes hiss, bees buzz 等等。
不悅耳的聲音，英文有不同的詞語：
DIN 嘈雜聲、吵閙聲 is a loud, unpleasant noise that lasts for a long time, 即是連續的、含混不清的聲音：the noises and dins of a city 城市的喧囂。
CLAMOUR 喧閙聲 is a loud noise especially one that is made by a lot of people or animals, any noisy confusion of sounds : the clamour of the market 街市鼎沸的人聲。
UPROAR 鼓噪、叫喊 is a situation in which people shout and make a lot of noise because they are angry or upset about something : the room was in an uproar 屋子一片嘈雜的叫喊聲。 Uproar also refers to an outpouring of sound as in: outraged shouting 憤怒的叫喊 , clamorous protest 大聲疾呼的抗議, or boisterous laughter 放縱的歡笑聲。
NOISY 跟 NOISME 不可混淆：Do not confuse the adjective noisome with the noun noise。
Noisome means harmful, noxious, unpleasant, offensive 有毒的，有害的，惡心的，例如 noisome smell 便是有惡臭的、令人厭惡的氣味。
有關聲音的諺語
Noises off 幽默的用法，指背景噪音 background noise，特別的用法，指 sounds off the stage劇院為演出需要，在舞台後面發出的各種聲響。
諺語 Empty vessels make the most sound 形容半吊子的人最愛吹牛，講的話空洞而沒有內容；滿瓶水不響，半瓶響叮噹。真才實學的人，反而不愛吹牛。諺語的意思指才能、知識、 經歷不多的人，才會叫得最大聲，也可用 empty vessels make the most noises。我們以間接的方式談及某事，用暗示的手法放出風聲，可以說：make noises about something : the company has been making noises about closing several offices and dismissing some employees。另一方面，make a noise in the world 有引起轟動，名噪一時的涵義。
SOUND 用作形容詞，有無損傷、完好、健康的意思：safe and sound 安然無恙，if we are safe and sound, we are not harmed in any way, although we were in a dangerous situation : We arrived home safe and sound 我們安然無恙地到了家。 Sound as a bell 表示 in perfect condition or health 狀況非常好，非常可靠，有裂縫的鐘，發不出清脆的聲音：The doctor says that the old man’s heart is as sound as a bell 醫生說老人家的心臟非常健康。
SOUND 用作動詞，有探測的意思：sound somebody out 探測某人的想法 to carefully discover what someone thinks or knows。假如某人的陳述或承諾，聽起來很空洞，好像不真實或不誠懇， if something someone says sounds hollow, it does not ring true or sincere。Death knell 是教堂響起的鐘聲，宣佈某人的死訊，或喪禮正在進行之中：sound the death knell for something 便是敲響喪鐘，宣佈其件事物告終。
逢星期二、五刊登
