# rhô - onomatopée pour râler



## Téléphone

Hello everyone,
Does anybody know an English equivalent for the sound one makes when someone's not happy ? In French, I would write "Rrrhôôôô". It's the written way to say someone is moaning. 
Any suggestions ?
Thank you


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## Novanas

Sometimes you'll see "argh!".  But I wouldn't say that's universal.


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## Téléphone

Could a teacher say "argh" to a pupil at the beginning of a sentence because she sees him sitting in a corner sulking, while his classmates are playing ? Could she say: "Argh, stop sulking and go play with them" ?


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## marget

I think I would say "Oh! " in a long drawn-out fashion or "Oh, come on!" with a lot of emphasis on the word "on".  I can't imagine the teacher saying "argh" myself.


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## Novanas

As I understood Téléphone's question, he was asking what would we write.  Now I've seen "Argh" written.  I'm not saying it's the only thing that could be written.  I agree with marget:  what would be said would probably be "Oh!".  I'm just saying if you're looking for a sound, on its own, to express unhappiness, "argh" is often used.


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## Téléphone

Thanks again for all your answers, but once again, could I write "argh" in the context I gave in my previous post ?


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## Novanas

No.  There I'd agree with marget: if you're quoting the teacher's words, he/she would say, "Oh,. . .".  This "argh" is used on its own just to show that someone is unhappy, but when they don't actually say anything.  They're just groaning.


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## marget

I have heard a few people say "Argh", but it has always been light hearted, more or less in jest.


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## SteveD

marget said:


> I think I would say "Oh! " in a long drawn-out fashion or "Oh, come on!" with a lot of emphasis on the word "on". I can't imagine the teacher saying "argh" myself.


 
Yes, "Aargh!" would only be seen written (in a comic book, for example).

Likewise, if by "not happy" you mean angry, "Grrr!" is what would be written but nobody is actually likely to say it.


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## Novanas

Yes, this is exactly what I was trying to say.  Thanks for explaining it better than I did.


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## Téléphone

I don't mean angry at all, I mean the person who says it is a little impatient, exasperated, but it is not as strong as angry. Does someone see what I mean ?


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## JMgif

"grrr" "aww" ??


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## marget

Téléphone said:


> I don't mean angry at all, I mean the person who says it is a little impatient, exasperated, but it is not as strong as angry. Does someone see what I mean ?


 
I still stand by "Oh" or "Oh come on" as I originally stated.


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## jann

Actually, there is an interjection we use to express exasperation, much like _rhô_... but it is not an onomatopoeia, and the meaning is totally dependent on tone.  That word is "hey!"  It can be written as well as spoken, and could certainly be used in the context you describe:

Hey! Stop sulking and go play with your classmates!

EDIT: A short, straight, low and slightly descending intonation is consistent with _rhô _(i.e., intonation similar to _"rhô !"_); it would be understood as a reprimand/reproach/correction.  For contrast, a longer intonation would be understood as an encouragement or a request.


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## trench feature

I wonder if we might say "Whoa" in the same way you use "rhô".


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## Novanas

Téléphone said:


> Hello everyone,
> Does anybody know an English equivalent for the sound one makes when someone's not happy ? In French, I would write "Rrrhôôôô". It's the written way to say someone is moaning.
> Any suggestions ?
> Thank you


 
I think we need to look at the question asked in the original post.  If what we're looking for is "the written way to say someone is moaning", then as I said earlier, "Argh", is one of those ways--and there are perhaps others.  But if we're looking for what people actually say, that's something different entirely.  There's any number of things that people say.

Perhaps Téléphone could clarify the question, because, having followed this thread, I'm not entirely sure at this point what the question is.


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## Téléphone

In French, when someone is moaning because he disagrees with a situation or is impatient or exasperated, he makes a sound which we write "rrrrrrrhôô". (I am not sure you actually see what it sounds like, but if you heard it you would recognise it right away). This is the way we transcript the sound. I wondered if English speakers too had transcripted the sound they make when they are a little upset and want others to know it .

It's a bit like a big sigh, but it makes more noise because it comes more from the throat (French people love to show they are upset).


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## xiancee

the anglo saxon would perhaps sigh ... but a little louder


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## akaAJ

"Ahhhh" ??? "Aargh" or "Arggh" is the caricatural interjection of a cartoon pirate or old salt.


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## WordRef1

I guaranty that "argh" is not the word for that. That has the meaning that the person is upset with something that happened, more with something that is a surprise, not an impatient groan of a sort. I think it started with the "comics" of a person getting punched in the gut or something like that.
I am thinking the question here is more like the sound Marge Simpson makes when Bart does something annoying, but I can not think of any way to write that, unless maybe "grrr" would work, though that also designates a growl like an angry dog makes. So, either that or use some imagination and use "hey" or something. I don't think there's a standard way to write it.


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## Téléphone

Ok. Thank you very much to all of you. I'll go with "oh, come on", which I think translates best what I want to say in this context.


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## GEmatt

Until this post, I had never seen _rrhhôôô_ written before - but I think I know exactly what you mean.

If it is just a sound, then how about _pfffff..._ ?
In terms of expressions, there are

_-For goodness sake!_ (originally, I think: _For God's sake!_)
_-For crying out loud!_
_..._
_For goodness sake! _is still reasonably current, I believe. _For God's sake!_ is perhaps less current, since it can be offensive. _For crying out loud!_ may be AE and old-fashioned, although you would need confirmation.


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## Téléphone

Yes, except that what you propose would be said at the end of a sentence, whereas rrrrhôô can be a sentence by itself. Just to say you're upset. And it often begins a sentence.


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## GEmatt

Téléphone said:


> Yes, except that what you propose would be said at the end of a sentence, whereas rrrrhôô can be a sentence by itself. Just to say you're upset...


Not necessarily. Take your example in Post #3. To express exasperation, the teacher could say to the pupil "[Oh] for goodness sake!", or elaborate and say "[Oh] for goodness sake, stop sulking and go and play with them!".

It could go at the end of the sentence, too: "Stop sulking and go and play with them, for goodness sake!"

As you like.


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## akaAJ

Could a teacher say "argh" to a pupil at the beginning of a sentence because she sees him sitting in a corner sulking, while his classmates are playing ? Could she say: "Argh, stop sulking and go play with them" ?

I more or less agree with GEmatt (although "For God's sake" would not be uncommon in a female teacher [mother figure] addressing a child).  An inarticulate sound is relatively unlikely here, but perhaps a sigh-like sound "HHHeu..." or "Pffff" (but with lips more open, not a real "f",  heavily aspirated, falling tone,  might precede "For goodness' sake, ...

http://forum.wordreference.com/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=8242386


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## xiancee

I like "for crying out loud" even though I had seen this expression several times on cartoons by G Larson, I had never heard it used by anyone until one day Orson used it in Desperate housewives!!!!


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## GEmatt

xiancee said:


> I like "for crying out loud" even though I had seen this expression several times on cartoons by G Larson, I had never heard it used by anyone until ....


Agreed on all three points.  My first experience of _For crying out loud!_ was in a scene from the film _The Exorcist_.  It's a 1970s film.  Needless to say, I've never heard it since. Perhaps it's only considered jocular, these days?


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## xiancee

GEmatt said:


> Agreed on all three points.  My first experience of _For crying out loud!_ was in a scene from the film _The Exorcist_.  It's a 1970s film.  Needless to say, I've never heard it since. Perhaps it's only considered jocular, these days?



We need feedback from native speakers 

I don ' remember " fro crying out loud " in "The exorcist" everyone in the theatre was already crying ....


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## marget

"For crying out loud" sounds good, but I'm not sure it's appropriate for children who might  take things literally.  For heaven's sake might be okay... unless "heaven" might not be considered politically correct.


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## akaAJ

"for crying out loud" shows a much greater level of irritation than "For goodness' sake", as well as being, in ways I can't explain, coarser, and more likely to be used man to man, or conceivably between reasonably acquainted men and women;  definitely not teacher to child.


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## ladyk

well I'm not sure it is what you were expecting but to my understanding, you are looking for a way to write that someone is making a sound in order to show people that they are here and draw attention to them?
What about "_Clears throat_", I have seen this in role playing games... just venturing here, but just saying it in case it helps


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## FrenchJan

To reopen a very old post, although #24and #29 are getting nearer to the expressions - for goodness sake or for heaven's sake (either at the beginning or end of the sentence), it was the sound of someone who's not happy, who wants to grumble at schoolchildren that Téléphone was asking about.  I did think of the verb "to tut", which is written "tsk!" and is an audible click of the tongue against the top teeth, and for emphasis if necessary, jerking the chin out and up at the same time.  tut - English-French Dictionary WordReference.com  This is more about disapproval and impatience than moaning though - be careful if using this in public, it is considered bad manners to tut at someone you don't know!
#25 HHHeu is more like the sound one would make in British English, "HHHeu" being a heavy and audible sigh, but to my knowledge, we have no standard way of writing this sound onomatopoeiacally.  In texts it is *sigh*.  (It's not Huh! or Ugh!, both of which mean different things.)  Can anyone think of how one would spell the equivalent sound of an exaggerated sigh?


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