Does Your Dog Say Ham, Gav, or Woof?

What Does the Dog Say?

Thanks to Ylvis, we know what the fox says. But what does the dog say? Depending on the language you speak, your dog could say gav (Russian), guau (Spanish), voff (Icelandic), meong (Korean), blaf (Dutch), ham (Romanian) or woof (English).

I was shocked to learn this five years ago.

I never knew that animal sounds (as imitated by humans) are different depending on the language you speak. So before you say something to your English-speaking co-workers about your pet duck who says vak (Turkish) or the mouse in your house that says zi (Mandarin), check out this list of English words for animal sounds:

  • Dog – bark, woof, ruff, bow wow
  • Cat – meow
  • Cow – moo
  • Horse – neigh
  • Pig – oink 
  • Sheep – baa
  • Donkey – hee-haw
  • Lion – roar
  • Bear – grrrrr
  • Tiger – raaaa
  • Snake – hiss
  • Frog – ribbit, croak
  • Mouse – squeak
  • Duck – quack
  • Chicken – cluck, bawk
  • Goose – honk
  • Rooster – cock-a-doodle-do
  • Bird – chirp, tweet
  • Owl – hoo hoo
  • Turkey – gobble gobble
  • Dove – coo
  • Bee – buzz

For more hilarious comparisons of what noises animals make in other languages, check out this colorful infographic by Buzz Feed.

Happy learning!

Vocabulary Explosion Course!

Join the waiting list for my Vocabulary Explosion video course. Perfect if you're studying for an exam like the TOEFL or IELTS exams.

Great, I will be in touch soon about my Vocabulary Explosion Course!