1 linking verb (not usually in the continuous tenses 通常不用于进行时) to give a particular impression when heard or read about; to seem 听起来；似乎: That sounds like a child crying. 听起来好像是儿童在哭泣。She sounded upset and angry on the phone. 听她在电话上的声音，她似乎很生气。You sound like your father when you say things like that! 你说那种事的时候，语气十足像你父亲！He sounds a very nice person from his letter. 从他写的信看来，他似乎是个和蔼可亲的人。Does she sound like the right person for the job? 她看来适合做这份工作吗？It doesn't sound as if/though he's very reliable. 他似乎不很靠得住。 ☞In spoken English, people often use ‘like’ instead of ‘as if’ or ‘as though’, especially in American English, but this is considered incorrect in written British English. 在口语中，尤其在美国英语里，常用like，而不用as if或as though。但在英国英语的书面语里，这种用法被认为是不正确的。

2 -sounding (used to form compound adjectives 用于构成复合形容词) seeming to be of the type mentioned, from what you have heard or read 听起来像…；读起来像…: a Spanish-sounding surname 听起来像西班牙语的姓氏

3 [T] to cause sth to make a sound; to give a signal by making a sound 使发声；发出声音作信号: to sound the horn of your car 按汽车喇叭A student on one of the upper floors sounded the alarm. 楼上的一名学生按响了警报器。

4 [I,T] (technical术语) to measure the depth of the sea or a lake by using a line with a weight on it, or an electronic instrument （用锤或电子仪器）探测（海或湖的深度）