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Looking for a word

BalazsBalazs
edited January 2015 in Writing
Hi All,

What would you call that noise that mainly women do when they get scared of something e.g. a spider. It's like a very short and quiet scream but I just can't find the right word for it even in my own language.

Thanks.
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Comments

  • LizLiz
    Squeak? Squeal?
  • BalazsBalazs
    squeak sounds about right. Thanks, Liz :)
  • Phots MollPhots Moll
    Or 'eek' if you want to quote it.
  • doradora
    edited January 2015
    I was going to offer something but on second thoughts, it's not correct.
  • BalazsBalazs
    Ah, two new words a day. Excellent! :)
  • Tiny NellTiny Nell
    Or shriek.
  • snailmalesnailmale
    edited January 2015
    I would have thought that an involuntary emission of wind might be a distinct possibility, though I'm too much of a gentleman to be more succinct.
  • BalazsBalazs
    Haha, that sounds very literary, snailmale. If I read that in a book I might think 'what the hell is that?' or I might think it was a belch. But if I read 'she squeaked', that I would know.
  • NefertariNefertari
    When I see a spider I don't squeak I scream loudly then run.
  • WebboWebbo
    yelp is fairly close too
  • Mrs BearMrs Bear
    I am not one for making involuntary noises of fear: I go silent, and watch the culprit for a moment, then either sort it out myself or fetch a man - not that he will be any less scared than me, but his ego will not permit him to show it.
    When clearing the way for a load of logs to be stored yesterday, Mr Bear (the hero of this piece) came out of the garage with a toad in his hands. Now, I would never, could never, do that.
  • LizLiz
    I only make noises if it falls out of a towel onto me or something.
  • LizLiz
    I love toads and frogs, could easily pick one of those up and actually would pick up a spider, I just don't like being jumped out at!
  • LizyLizy
    "yikes!"
  • doradora
    *cowers behind door and waits for Liz to pass by*
  • snailmalesnailmale
    Haha, that sounds very literary, snailmale. If I read that in a book I might think 'what the hell is that?' or I might think it was a belch. But if I read 'she squeaked', that I would know.
    Thank you, Balazs. I'm pleased that at least one person on this forum acknowledges my literary credentials.

  • Tiny NellTiny Nell
    I would pick up nothing that moved, not even a cleaned and buffed Chihuahua, but I would yelp and shriek at anything that came towards me with purpose.
  • CarolCarol
    In my case it would be a strangled scream. :D
  • C2C2
    In todays modern world are women scared by such things? tut.
    If they have to (sigh)
    Maybe a noun to portray a screech and if absolutely necessary a verb to portray, shriek. Women today ( or maybe its me) don't worry about such trivial things.
  • Tiny NellTiny Nell
    You're just brave and strong, Maro. ;;)
  • lindsayllindsayl
    I picked up a handful of compost from a bag and a large toad jumped from my hand. I screamed like there had been a murder.
  • SmaugSmaug
    I remember once opening the Plant Room door at work to discover two three inch spiders on the reverse - the engineer, for whom I was opening it, very definitely uttered a strangled squeal (and had to be fed tea and biscuits whilst I evicted the spiders).
  • LizyLizy
    I#ve told my spider story already so I won't repeat it, but I am brave.
  • BalazsBalazs
    It's actually for a ghost story, I just brought up spiders as an example.
    I once got really scared of that pine shaped air freshener which was hanging from the middle mirror of the hire car I was driving. It was dark outside, the pine was dark too, I was facing forward and I was slowly turning right. That bloody little pine started swinging and all I saw from the corner of my eyes was that something dark was moving just where I'm about to turn. I thought I was going to run someone over.
  • Phots MollPhots Moll
    I'm not scared of spiders (or toads) but if one dropped on my face or hand I'd jump and might well make the kind of sound Balazs is referring to. Then I'd take him somewhere safe and release him.
  • Phots MollPhots Moll
    By 'him' I, of course, mean the spider. I don't want anyone thinking I'd be rash enough to release Balazs into the wild.
  • heatherheather
    I did think that, and am much relieved by the second posting!
  • Mrs BearMrs Bear
    It would be unkind, PM - he's scared of pine cones, and you never know how many are out there.
  • LizLiz
    Pine air fresheners, Mrs B, not cones. Everyone should be scared of air fresheners, they cause stomach upsets, earache and depression. Bu the manufacturers deny this of course, and so still sell them in evermore increasing quantity and ability to poison you by spraying as you pass.
  • Mrs BearMrs Bear
    Whatever happened to opening a window and airing a room? Costs nothing, doesn't poison you. Are people so scared that they daren't do that any more?
  • NoodlehendonNoodlehendon
    Now, ladies, what's all this about being scared of animals. They are probably, and deservedly, more scared of you. My wife saw a large 2 foot grass snake coming out of our pond. Her reaction? "What a beautiful snake!" She grabbed it by the neck, put it in a bucket with a lid, and released it into a nearby river.
    That's a good scene for a story.
  • JohnnywriterJohnnywriter
    I'm not good with spiders or snakes.

    I have no idea why; I don't recall ever having a bad experience with either.
  • LizLiz
    Um.. why into a river rather than, er, grass? They are quite strong swimmers but a fast moving river could drown them.
  • NoodlehendonNoodlehendon
    Well, by the river then. At least out of our garden.
  • LizLiz
    We've never had a grass snake, sadly. But toads, slow worms, hedgehogs, and a badger. The latter ruined the lawn, peeled it back like an envelope. We couldn't think hat was doing it. Eventually we found what was doing it when the man 3 doors down said he'd had to get a wildlife expert out to evict it from under his shed - the expert said it was a young male seeking new territory for itself, and he took it somewhere nice.
  • C2C2
    You're just brave and strong, Maro. ;;)
    I'm not sure about the brave thing TN. When it comes to the creepy crawly things, I go looking for them. They have such a wonderful array of colours and the way they live is of interest, to me.
    Sorry for going off topic, Balazs. I'll zip it. :-$
  • doradora
    Whatever happened to opening a window and airing a room? Costs nothing, doesn't poison you. Are people so scared that they daren't do that any more?
    We're dab hands at opening windows in my family. Especially car windows on the route to school.

    With windy boys in the car, I've certainly mastered the art of opening a car window.
  • CarolCarol
    Toads and frogs just make me jump and my heart to race for a moment, because of the sudden movement. I wouldn't pick them up, but they don't worry me.
  • CarolCarol
    Toads and frogs just make me jump and my heart to race for a moment, because of the sudden movement. I wouldn't pick them up, but they don't worry me.
  • LizyLizy
    At my grammar school there was a pond with a pipe that led into an overflow drain. Toads would go down the pipe but couldn't get back. We girls spent many a lunchtime lifting the manhole cover and hoiking the toads out to release back into the pond.
    It was probably the same toads each time. Wonder what they did in holiday time?
  • SmaugSmaug
    Formed an orderly queue?
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