adj. Characterized by a hissing sound such as the "s" or "sh" in sash or surge.
n. A hissing sound such as the 's' or 'sh' in 'sash' or 'surge'.
the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English
adj. Making a hissing sound; uttered with a hissing sound; hissing.
The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
Hissing; making or having a hissing sound: as, s and z are sibilant letters.
n. An alphabetic sound that is uttered with hissing, as s and z, and sh and zh (in azure, etc.), also ch (tsh) and j (dzh).
WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
adj. of speech sounds produced by forcing air through a constricted passage (as `f', `s', `z', or `th' in both `thin' and `then')
n. a consonant characterized by a hissing sound (like s or sh)
Word Usage
"P; and air from the mouth be forced between them; the W sibilant is produced, as pronounced by the Germans, and by some of the inferiour people of London, and ought to have an appropriated character as thus [*]."