sounding board

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sounding board

A musician gently taps the sounding board of an acoustic guitar.

Definition
  1. Noun:
    • A thin board in a musical instrument that vibrates to amplify sound: In music, a sounding board is a resonator, typically a thin piece of wood, that strengthens the sound produced by an instrument like a piano or guitar.
    • A person or group used to test ideas or opinions: A sounding board is a person whose reactions are used to gauge the potential success, acceptability, or clarity of a plan, policy, or idea before it is finalized or made public.
Usage Examples

  • Noun (Musical Instrument Part):

    • The piano's rich tone depends heavily on the quality of its sounding board.
    • The luthier carefully selected spruce for the guitar's sounding board.

  • Noun (Person for Testing Ideas):

    • Before the speech, the politician used her chief of staff as a sounding board.
    • I often use my colleagues as a sounding board for new project concepts.
Advanced Usage

  • "to act as a sounding board for someone": To serve as a person who listens and gives feedback.

    • As a manager, part of my role is to act as a sounding board for my team's concerns.

  • "to use something as a sounding board": To employ a group or forum to test reactions.

    • The company used the focus group as a sounding board for the new advertising campaign.
Variants and Related Words
  • Soundboard (noun): A common alternative spelling for the musical instrument component. (e.g., ).
  • Resonator (noun): A more general term for a device that increases sound by vibration.
Synonyms
  • Noun (Person): Advisor, consultant, tester, feedback source.
  • Noun (Object): Resonator, diaphragm.
Related Phrases
  • To bounce ideas off someone: This informal phrase is conceptually similar to using someone as a sounding board.
    • She bounced her ideas off her mentor before writing the proposal.
Related Idioms
  • A trial balloon: This idiom refers to an idea or plan presented to gauge public reaction, which is a similar concept to using a person as a sounding board but on a larger, often public, scale.
    • The article was a trial balloon for the proposed tax reforms.
sounding board

A musician gently taps the sounding board of an acoustic guitar.

Noun
  1. (music) resonator consisting of a thin board whose vibrations reinforce the sound of the instrument
  2. a person whose reactions to something serve as an indication of its acceptability
    • I would use newspapermen as a sounding board for such policies

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