The act of one who, or that which, sounds (in any of the senses of the several verbs). [1913 Webster]
measurement by sounding; also, the depth so ascertained. [1913 Webster]

Sounding lead, the plummet at the end of a sounding line. -- Sounding line, a line having a plummet at the end, used in making soundings. -- Sounding post (Mus.), a small post in a violin, violoncello, or similar instrument, set under the bridge as a support, for propagating the sounds to the body of the instrument; -- called also sound post. -- Sounding rod (Naut.), a rod used to ascertain the depth of water in a ship's hold. -- In soundings, within the eighty-fathom line. Ham. Nav. Encyc.

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OXFORD DICTIONARY

Sounding, n.
1 a the action or process of measuring the depth of water, now usu. by means of echo. b an instance of this (took a sounding).
2 (in pl.) a a region close to the shore of the right depth for sounding. b Naut. measurements taken by sounding. c cautious investigation (made soundings as to his suitability).
3 a the determination of any physical property at a depth in the sea or at a height in the atmosphere. b an instance of this.

Idiom

sounding-balloon a balloon used to obtain information about the upper atmosphere. sounding-line a line used in sounding the depth of water. sounding-rod a rod used in finding the depth of water in a ship's hold (see SOUND(3)).

Sounding, adj.
1 giving forth (esp. loud or resonant) sound (sounding brass).
2 emptily boastful, resonant, or imposing (sounding promises).

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THESAURUS

Sounding

bathometry, bathymetry, booming, chiming, depth sounding, dinging, droning, echo sounding, echoic, echoing, echolocation, fathomage, fathoming, growling, jingling, lingering, monotone, monotonic, oceanography, pealing, persistent, reboant, rebounding, reechoing, repercussive, resounding, reverberant, reverberating, reverberatory, ringing, rumbling, sonar, sonation, soniferous, sonification, sonorous, sounded, soundings, thundering, tingling, tinkling, tintinnabular, tintinnabulary, tintinnabulous, tolling, tonal, toneless, undamped, water

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ROGET THESAURUS

Sounding

Sound

N sound, noise, strain, accent, twang, intonation, tone, cadence, sonorousness, audibility, resonance, voice, aspirate, ideophone, rough breathing, acoustics, phonics, phonetics, phonology, phonography, diacoustics, diaphonics, phonetism, sounding, soniferous, sonorous, sonorific, resonant, audible, distinct, stertorous, phonetic, phonic, phonocamptic, a thousand trills and quivering sounds, forensis strepitus.

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