hisses

1. 1
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of hiss.

   The snake hisses a warning before it strikes.

   The radiator hisses softly as it heats the room.

   Note

   Here the verb agrees with a single subject, such as he, she, it or the kettle, while every other present-tense person takes bare hiss. It works with or without an object. The steam hisses, the audience hisses the villain, and she hisses a reply through clenched teeth. Its spelling and its extra syllable are shared with the plural noun.

2. 2
   noun

   Plural of hiss.

   The old recording was full of faint hisses and crackles.

   Sharp hisses rose from the crowd as the referee made his call.

   Note

   The plural takes -es rather than -s because hiss already ends in a sibilant, and the ending adds a full syllable. Both meanings of the noun make this plural: the sibilant noises of steam, snakes or old tape, and the hisses of disapproval an audience sends up. The same spelling also serves the present-tense verb, so in a sentence about a crowd only context tells noun from verb.

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