Stentor
/ˈstɛn.tɔːr/noun
A person with an exceptionally loud voice; also, a genus of trumpet-shaped freshwater protozoans.
Did you know?Stentor’s name comes from a herald in Homer’s *Iliad*, whose supernatural-sounding voice became a lasting metaphor for overwhelming human speech.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European, possibly
PIE
*stenh₂-
“To resound or thunder; this proposed root is often connected with the Greek name, though the link is not certain.”
8th Century BCE
Ancient Greek
Στέντωρ (Sténtōr)
“Stentor, the Greek herald whose voice was as powerful as that of fifty men.”
8th–7th Century BCE
Ancient Greek
sténtōr
“A loud-voiced herald; a personal name used as a symbol of booming speech.”
16th Century
English
Stentor
“A classical allusion to a person with an exceptionally powerful voice.”
19th Century
English
stentorian
“Extremely loud or powerful in sound, especially of a voice.”
Modern English
English
stentor
“A person with a very loud voice, or a freshwater ciliate of the genus *Stentor*.”