FREE! Click here to Join FunTrivia. Thousands of games, quizzes, and lots more!
Fun Trivia
Home: Questions and Answers Forum
Answers to 100,000 Fascinating Questions
Welcome to FunTrivia's Question & Answer forum!

Search All Questions


Please cite any factual claims with citation links or references from authoritative sources. Editors continuously recheck submissions and claims.

Archived Questions

Goto Qn #


Why does a burp make a sound instead of sounding like a normal breath?

Question #25867. Asked by Bennett.

Barrow boy
Answer has 11 votes
Currently Best Answer
Barrow boy
22 year member
532 replies

Answer has 11 votes.

Currently voted the best answer.
When we talk, we pass a 'stream' of air from our lungs over our vocal chords in the larynx to produce speech, song or other dignified noises. When we burp, the air is a 'bubble' of air originating from the stomach and as this passes through the throat it sets up a resonance independent from the vocal chords. Because there is little energy in the bubble of air it produces a deeper sound than our normal voice.

My son, however, is perfectly able to burp speech through controlling the shape of his mouth just as if he were talking.

People who have lost the use of their vocal chords (generally through having them removed due to cancer of the larynx) can learn to burp words.

Jan 02 2003, 10:21 PM
Gnomon
Answer has 10 votes
Gnomon
24 year member
1331 replies

Answer has 10 votes.
That answer is basically right, but it is not the vocal cords that produce the sound in a burp. The vocal cords are situated in the windpipe so they are no anywhere between the stomach and the mouth. It is a flap of muscle/tissue at the top of the oesophagus (gullet or food pipe) that vibrates. Since this is not designed for producing sound, it is very slack and produces a low frequency noise.

Jan 02 2003, 10:33 PM
free email trivia FREE! Get a new mixed Fun Trivia quiz each day in your email. It's a fun way to start your day!


arrow Your Email Address:

Sign in or Create Free User ID to participate in the discussion

Related FunTrivia Quizzes

play quiz "I Can Burp My ABC's!"
(Over the Hedge)
play quiz Make Love, Make Cookies, Make Anything But War
(Specific Topic Mixes)
play quiz Odd-Sounding Words
(Unusual and Obscure Words)

Return to FunTrivia
"Ask FunTrivia" strives to offer the best answers possible to trivia questions. We ask our submitters to thoroughly research questions and provide sources where possible. Feel free to post corrections or additions. This is server B184.