zzz.

n.  the scamper of a mouse, described by Zaida Rivera in Wishes, Lies, and Dreams: Teaching Children to Write Poetry by Kenneth Koch.


n.  the sound of a force field generator.

<I haul myself over to the field generator, very glad that it is a standard Starfleet design, uncomplicated and unburdened by various modifications.  It hums loudly, generating a rather annoying “zzz” sound, but it makes no fuss as I pry open the front and start examining the circuitry inside.  —Seema, “Lines in the Sand: The Darkest Hour, part VII.”>

n.  the sound of a lens withdrawing into the body of a camera (PBase.com).


n.  the sound of the letters x and z (ReadingKey.com); see also zzzz.


n.  the title of a recording by Leif Elggren and Thomas Liljenberg of over an hour of sleeping and snoring sounds.

zzz-zzz-zzz.

n.  the buzzing of a mosquito.

<Styles of Beyond’s [album] Megadef begins with a buzz.  Not a metaphorical this-shit-is-hot buzz, but the needling, invasive sound of a mosquito tickling your ear.  The zzz-zzz-zzz, panned in stereo no less, is first a novelty, then a nuisance, and eventually yanks you to the brink of frenzy.  Before the pestering drone carries you over the edge, though, Styles of Beyond unleash the pent-up pressure like a sonic geyser.  The experience is unnerving.  It’s also enthralling.  —Oliver Wang, LA Weekly.>

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