Ding″dong′ the″o‐ry. (Philol.) The theory which maintains that the primitive elements of language are reflex expressions induced by sensory impressions; that is, as stated by Max Müller, the creative faculty gave to each general conception as it thrilled for the first time through the brain a phonetic expression; — jocosely so called from the analogy of the sound of a bell induced by the stroke of the clapper.
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Webster's Dictionary 1913
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, C. & G. Merriam Co., 1913.