\So*no"rous\, a. [L. sonorus, fr. sonor, -oris, a
sound, akin to sonus a sound. See {Sound}.]
1. Giving sound when struck; resonant; as, sonorous metals.
2. Loud-sounding; giving a clear or loud sound; as, a
   sonorous voice.
3. Yielding sound; characterized by sound; vocal; sonant; as,
   the vowels are sonorous.
4. Impressive in sound; high-sounding.
         The Italian opera, amidst all the meanness and
         familiarty of the thoughts, has something beautiful
         and sonorous in the expression.       --Addison.
         There is nothing of the artificial Johnsonian
         balance in his style. It is as often marked by a
         pregnant brevity as by a sonorous amplitude. --E.
                                               Everett.
5. (Med.) Sonant; vibrant; hence, of sounds produced in a
   cavity, deep-toned; as, sonorous rhonchi.
{Sonorous figures} (Physics), figures formed by the
   vibrations of a substance capable of emitting a musical
   tone, as when the bow of a violin is drawn along the edge
   of a piece of glass or metal on which sand is strewed, and
   the sand arranges itself in figures according to the
   musical tone. Called also {acoustic figures}.
{Sonorous tumor} (Med.), a tumor which emits a clear,
   resonant sound on percussion. -- {So*no"rous*ly}, adv. --
   {So*no"rous*ness}, n.