# His voice is breaking.



## Encolpius

Good morning, how do you say if a pubescent boy's voice is changing. 

*English*: His voice is breaking. 

*Hungarian*: Mutál. (yes, we use just one simple word, actually it means "mutating")

*Czech*: Mutuje. (the same as in Hungarian)


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## Yendred

In French:
_Sa voix est en train de muer_ \mɥe\
or just:
_Il est en train de muer_

In French, _muer_ and _muter_ are different:
_une voix mue (_from_ mu*er*)
un virus mute (_from_ mu*ter*)_


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## Penyafort

*Catalan*: Està canviant (_or _mudant) la veu = literally, [he/she] Is changing the voice.

When they do, they also tend to *fer galls *(literally, 'to do roosters, that is, squawks, false notes, cracking voice').


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## Yendred

Penyafort said:


> When they do, they also tend to *fer galls *(literally, 'to do roosters, that is, squawks, false notes, cracking voice').


In French:
_Il a la voix qui déraille _(literally like a train derailing )


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## Welsh_Sion

Boring as anything in *Cymraeg/Welsh*:

*Mae ei lais yn torri*
Is his S.M. voice PRED. breaking
'His voice is breaking'

*Mae ei lais yn newid*
Is his S.M. voice PRED. changing
'His voice is changing'


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## apmoy70

*Greek*: *«Η φωνή του κάνει κοκοράκια»* [ifo̞ˈnitu ˈkani ko̞ko̞ˈɾaca] --> _his voice does/makes cockerels_; the v. is the 3rd p. Present Indicative of *«κάνω»* [ˈkano̞] --> _to do, make_ < Classical v. *«κάμνω» kắmnō*.
*«Κοκοράκι/-κια»* [ko̞ko̞ˈɾaci] (neut. nom. sinɡ.)/[ko̞ko̞ˈɾaca] (neut. nom. pl.) --> _cockerel(s)_, diminutive of MoGr masc. noun *«κόκορας»* [ˈko̞ko̞ɾas̠] --> _rooster_, onomatopoeia from the rooster's crow _«κοκορίκο»_ [ko̞ko̞ˈɾiko̞].

Formally it's called *«μεταφώνηση»* [me̞taˈfo̞nis̠i] (fem.) --> _voice chanɡe_ (from which the linɡuistic term _metaphony_ derives), a compound: Classical prefix and preposition *«μετά» mĕtắ* + Classical fem. noun *«φωνή» pʰōnḗ*.
His voice changes: *«Μεταφωνίζει»* [me̞tafo̞ˈniz̠i] (3rd p. Present Indicative sinɡ.).


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## symposium

Italian: "Sta cambiando voce" = (He) is changing (his) voce.


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## Yendred

Penyafort said:


> *Catalan*: Està canviant (_or _mudant) la veu





apmoy70 said:


> His voice changes: *«Μεταφωνίζει»* [me̞tafo̞ˈniz̠i] (3rd p. Present Indicative sinɡ.).





symposium said:


> Italian: "Sta cambiando voce" = (He) is changing (his) voce.


For languages that just say _to change one's voice _or something similar, isn't there some ambiguity with situations like, for example, if someone changes his voice to imitate another person? How do you resolve this ambiguity?


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## Awwal12

In Russian it's pretty much like in English: голос ломается (gólos lomáyetsya - "the voice breaks (lit. breaks itself)").


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## apmoy70

Yendred said:


> For languages that just say _to change one's voice _or something similar, isn't there some ambiguity with situations like, for example, if someone changes his voice to imitate another person? How do you resolve this ambiguity?


By saying that s/he is mimicking someone's voice: 
*«Μιμούμαι τη φωνή»* [miˈmume̞ ˌtifo̞ˈni] --> _to mimic the voice_, *«μιμείται τη φωνή»* [miˈmite̞ ˌtifo̞ˈni] --> _s/he mimics the voice_. The v. is the deponent *«μιμούμαι»* [miˈmume̞] --> _to mimic, imitate, copy_ < Classical denominative deponent v. *«μῑμέομαι/μιμοῦμαι» mīméŏmai* (uncontracted)/*mīmoûmai* (contracted) --> _to mimic_ < Classical masc. noun *«μῖμος» mîmŏs* --> _mime_ (of unknown etymoloɡy, per Beekes it's Pre-Greek). Even today, we call the actor who imitates another person's (of well-known, celebrity status) voice, a *«μίμος»* [ˈmimo̞s̠] (masc. and fem.).


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## symposium

Yendred said:


> For languages that just say _to change one's voice _or something similar, isn't there some ambiguity with situations like, for example, if someone changes his voice to imitate another person? How do you resolve this ambiguity?


"Cambiare voce" is a bit of a set phrase, it's not really used to describe any other situation. Besides, context usually clears all doubts away. If you wanted to say something like "He talked to her on the phone but he changed his voice so that she wouldn't recognize him" I supposed other verbs would normally be employed (alterare, camuffare, travisare...) but even if you use "cambiare" it's pretty clear you don't mean to say that he turned himself into a boy going through puberty.


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## AutumnOwl

Swedish: Han är i målbrottet - he is in (mål = old word for speaking/talking) + (brott = breaking).


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## Welsh_Sion

@Yendred  For languages that just say _to change one's voice _or something similar, isn't there some ambiguity with situations like, for example, if someone changes his voice to imitate another person? How do you resolve this ambiguity?

________

In our Welsh case I suppose we'd say something like,

*Mae o'n newid ei lais er mwyn dynwared X*
Is he PRED changing his S.M. voice in-order-to S.M. imitate X
He is changing/changes his voice to imitate X

*Mae o'n addasu ei lais ...*
Is he PRED adapting his S.M. voice ...
He is adapting/adapts his voice ...


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## Roxxxannne

In English, 'his voice is changing' refers to the overall change during puberty. 'His voice is breaking' and 'his voice is cracking' refer to the phenomenon that occurs discontinuously for an instant or two during the process.  One may notice that a young man's voice is changing without hearing it 'break' or 'crack.'


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## Pedro y La Torre

We also say (in Ireland at least) that "his balls have dropped" to indicate the onset of puberty (for males, obviously).


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## Encolpius

Pedro y La Torre said:


> We also say (in Ireland at least) that "his balls have dropped" to indicate the onset of puberty (for males, obviously).


Do you say it in English or in Irish? 
And I assume it is her boobs have dropped for girls, right?


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## Awwal12

Encolpius said:


> Do you say it in English or in Irish?


I suppose it's 100% clear from the context that Pedro y La Torre meant English.


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## Pedro y La Torre

Encolpius said:


> Do you say it in English or in Irish?
> And I assume it is her boobs have dropped for girls, right?


In English of course (like most Irish people these days, I can't speak Irish fluently). No, there's no equivalent for girls.  

It seems to be more commonly used in British English than AmE according to Professor Google (I should note too that it's not the same register as one's voice, erm, breaking).


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## Welsh_Sion

@Encolpius: And I assume it is her boobs have dropped for girls, right?

_________

The opposite I'd imagine. If a girl's boobs have dropped (or more exactly, 'sagged') she's more likely to be an octogenarian ... (With apologies for the obvious sexism and ageism.)


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## Roxxxannne

Encolpius said:


> Do you say it in English or in Irish?
> And I assume it is her boobs have dropped for girls, right?


Speaking as a woman who has nursed a baby and gone through menopause, one's breasts begin to change shape after one has nursed a baby.


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## farscape

In Romanian is very close to the English form (his/her voice is changing): Lui/Ei i se schimbă vocea.


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## Ballenero

In Spanish you can say  
cambiar la voz (change), 
and also
mudar la voz (moult).


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## merquiades

Pedro y La Torre said:


> We also say (in Ireland at least) that "his balls have dropped" to indicate the onset of puberty (for males, obviously).





Pedro y La Torre said:


> It seems to be more commonly used in British English than AmE according to Professor Google (I should note too that it's not the same register as one's voice, erm, breaking).


Oh, it is definitely used in AE too but it might be more politically incorrect to say it, as is the case with all these types of colorful words and expressions on the western side of the Atlantic.


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