Humming — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

a humming noise

the act of singing with closed lips

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/hˈʌmɪŋ/

🇬🇧British English

/hˈʌmɪŋ/

🇮🇳Indian English

/hˈʌmɪŋ/

2 syllables Say it as /hˈʌmɪŋ/.

Examples

the hum of distant traffic
She hummed a melody
This office is buzzing with activity

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

thrum buzz hum seethe

Parts of Speech

noun	a humming noise “the hum of distant traffic”
noun	the act of singing with closed lips
verb	sing with closed lips “She hummed a melody”
verb	be noisy with activity “This office is buzzing with activity”
verb	sound with a monotonous hum
verb	make a low continuous sound “The refrigerator is humming”

Word Forms

hum	verb	be noisy with activity
hummer	noun	a singer who produces a tune without opening the lips or forming words
humming	noun	the act of singing with closed lips
hum	noun	a humming noise
buzz	noun	a confusion of activity and gossip

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

summt

ein summendes Geräusch

🇫🇷French

bourdonnement

un bourdonnement

🇪🇸Spanish

zumbador

un zumbido

🇮🇹Italian

ronzio

un ronzio

🇳🇱Dutch

neuriën

een zoemend geluid

🇵🇹Portuguese

cantarolando

um zumbido

🇷🇺Russian

напевать

гудящий шум

India

🇮🇳Hindi

गिनगिनानेवाला

एक गुंजन ध्वनि

🇧🇩Bengali

গুনগুন

একটি গুনগুন শব্দ

🇮🇳Tamil

ஹம்மிங்

ஒரு ஹம்மிங் சத்தம்

🇮🇳Telugu

హమ్మింగ్

ఒక హమ్మింగ్ శబ్దం

🇮🇳Marathi

गुणगुणणे

एक गुणगुणणारा आवाज

🇮🇳Gujarati

ગુંજન

ગુંજારવાનો અવાજ

🇮🇳Kannada

ಗುನುಗುವುದು

ಒಂದು ಗುನುಗುವ ಶಬ್ದ

🇮🇳Malayalam

ഹമ്മിംഗ്

ഒരു മൂളൽ ശബ്ദം

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਗੂੰਜਣਾ

ਇੱਕ ਗੂੰਜਦਾ ਸ਼ੋਰ

🇵🇰Urdu

گنگنانا

ایک گنگناتی آواز

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

嗡嗡声

🇯🇵Japanese

ハミング

ハミングノイズ

🇰🇷Korean

허밍

윙윙거리는 소리

🇻🇳Vietnamese

vo ve

một tiếng ồn ào

🇹🇭Thai

ฮัมเพลง

เสียงฮัม

🇮🇩Indonesian

bersenandung

suara dengungan

🇵🇭Filipino

humuhuni

isang humuhuni na ingay

🇲🇾Malay

bersenandung

bunyi berdengung

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

طنين

ضجيج طنين

🇮🇷Persian

زمزمه کردن

صدای زمزمه

🇹🇷Turkish

uğultu

bir uğultu sesi

🇮🇱Hebrew

זִמזוּם

רעש זמזום

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'humming'?

The primary meaning of 'humming' is 'a humming noise'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'humming' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'humming' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'humming' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'humming' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'humming' in your daily reading?

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Do you find 'humming' easy to spell?

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In your opinion, does the word 'humming' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'humming' in regular conversations?

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Adults (20-60)

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How likely are you to use 'humming' in a professional email?

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Would you classify 'humming' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

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