''Vroom'' (and variant spelling) is an

onomatopoeia Onomatopoeia is the process of creating a word that phonetically imitates, resembles, or suggests the sound that it describes. Such a word itself is also called an onomatopoeia. Common onomatopoeias include animal noises such as ''oink'', '' ...

that represents the sound of an engine revving up. It also describes the act of purposefully operating a motor vehicle at high speeds so as to create loud engine noises. The word is a common early childhood sound, and is used in speech therapy techniques. It is also an example of a cross-linguistic onomatopoeia.

Origins

According to the

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary ''Webster's Dictionary'' is any of the English language dictionaries edited in the early 19th century by American lexicographer Noah Webster (1758–1843), as well as numerous related or unrelated dictionaries that have adopted the Webster's n ...

, the first instance of "vroom" appearing in text was in 1965. Its origin is traced to the United States.

Role in language development

"Vroom" is cited in early childhood language development texts as an example of a common early word or sound made by young children in the course of play. Anthony D. Pellegrini writes in the chapter "Interpreting Children's Play" in the book ''The Puzzling Child: From Recognition to Treatment'' (1982):

The social phonological play of two year olds is exemplified by use of conventional noises, through syllable repetition, to identify actions, events, and objects...Two children may be playing parallel or associatively with trucks. Their phonological play would be the ''vroom'' sound of truck engines

Julia Gillen further elaborates in the book ''The Language of Children'' (2003) that "vroom" and similar sound noises are the earliest examples of speech development:

However, you might look particularly at the accompaniment of words with actions. "Vroom vroom" is a good example…We might not count this as an early word at all; it might be used by a child who is not yet using words but who is consistently using certain vocalization to express specific intentions of feelings.

Speech therapy

The word is also used as a tool in treating children with articulation and phonological disorders. Dennis M. Ruscello writes in the book ''Treating Articulation and Phonological Disorders in Children'' (2008):

The clinician should encourage vocalizations that can be carried out in the context of body movement or activity. For instance, a client can pair vocalization with play. The clinician and client might play with a favorite toy such as a car and make a ''vroom'' sound while playing.

Other languages

"Vroom" is an example of a cross-linguistic onomatopoeia, in that its pronunciation and imitative qualities are consistent throughout many different languages.

Examples

*In Batak, ''ngong, ngooongngng ...'' *In

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

, ''rum, rumm'' *In

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

, ''brmmm brmmm'' *In

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

, ''vrum vrum'', ''brum brum'', ''nøn nøn'' *In

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

, ''broem'', ''vroem'' *In

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, ''vroom vroom'', ''broom broom'' *In

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

, ''vruum vruum'', ''bruum bruum'', ''prööm prööm'' (spoken) *In French, ''vroum vroum'' *In

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

, ''brumm brumm'', ''wrumm wrumm'' *In

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

, ''brum brum'' *In Hungarian, ''brum brumm'' *In

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

, ''bureung bureung'' 부릉부릉 *In

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

, ''brym brym'', ''brum brum'' *In

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

, ''vruum vruum'' *In

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language *** Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language ** Romanian cuisine, tradition ...

, ''vrum vrum'' *In

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

, ''run run'' *In

Slovenian Slovene or Slovenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Slovenia, a country in Central Europe * Slovene language, a South Slavic language mainly spoken in Slovenia * Slovenes The Slovenes, also known as Slovenians ( sl, Sloven ...

, ''brum brum'' *In

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

, ''brum brum'' *In Thai ''bruen bruen'' บรึ๊น บรึ๊น *In Turkish, ''vrum vrum'' (truck), ''han han'' (car) *In

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overse ...

, ''bờ rừm'' *In

Indonesian Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to: * Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia ** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago ** Indonesian ...

, ''ngeng ngeng''

References

External links

*{{wiktionary-inline Onomatopoeia