taxonomy.md

Semantic cue taxonomy

UI SFX names what happened, not what the sound resembles. Each cue should carry the same intent across every feel pack.

Input

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
hover	Fine-pointer discovery on sparse, important controls	Touch interfaces or every item in a dense table
press	Pointer or key down on a physical-feeling control	The completed action outcome
release	Pointer or key up, especially press-and-hold controls	Success confirmation
double-click	A recognized rapid secondary activation	Two unrelated clicks
focus	A control becomes ready for keyboard or text input	Pointer hover without focus
long-press	A sustained press reveals a secondary action	An ordinary primary activation

Selection

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
select	Choosing a tab, option, item, or tool	Turning on a binary setting
deselect	Removing an item from the active set	Closing the surrounding view
toggle-on	A setting changes from off to on	General selection
toggle-off	A setting changes from on to off	Errors or blocked settings
check	A checkbox or task becomes complete	General success across a whole flow
uncheck	A checkbox or task becomes incomplete	Undoing unrelated content edits

Navigation

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
open	Menus, sheets, panels, detail views	Starting a background process
close	Dismissing a layer or collapsing detail	Stopping media
back	Returning to the previous place	Undoing data changes
forward	Advancing to the next place	Completing a multi-step flow
expand	Revealing detail inside a collapsed region	Opening a separate navigation layer
collapse	Returning detail to its compact state	Closing the surrounding view

Editing

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
delete	A destructive removal that has been committed	A removable selection before confirmation
cancel	Abandoning a pending action without applying it	Closing an ordinary navigation layer
undo	Reversing the most recent change	Back navigation
redo	Reapplying a reversed change	Retrying a failed network request
copy	Placing selected content on the clipboard	Duplicating an object immediately
paste	Inserting clipboard content	Uploading or importing a file

Movement

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
drag-start	An object lifting into a dragged state	Every pointer move
drop	A dragged object landing in a valid target	Invalid drops, which need error or blocked UI
snap	Alignment, docking, or grid lock	General selection
swipe	Spatial touch navigation	Ordinary scrolling
reorder	An item settles into a new sequence position	Every drag movement frame
invalid-drop	A dragged object cannot land in the target	A general validation error

Communication

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
send	A message or shared object leaves	Upload completion
receive	A direct response or object arrives	Every background sync
notification	New, non-urgent information	Warnings or direct mentions
mention	The user is directly addressed	General activity feeds
typing	Brief feedback for each local text-entry keystroke	A remote typing indicator or long typing loop
reaction	A lightweight social response is added	A full message notification

Feedback

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
success	An action finishes as expected	Large multi-step completion
error	An action fails and needs correction	Destructive confirmations
warning	A consequential state needs review	Routine information
info	A neutral system fact appears	Every tooltip
blocked	An action cannot continue in the current state	A recoverable network failure
retry	A failed action is attempted again	The failure itself

Progress

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
start	Recording, processing, or a session begins	Opening a view
stop	Recording, processing, or a session ends	A successful result
progress-step	A discrete step advances inside a longer process	Every animation frame or percentage update
complete	A multi-step or longer-running process finishes	Every successful click
queued	Work is accepted and waiting to begin	Work that is already processing
checkpoint	A meaningful stage in a longer process is saved	Every percentage increment

Loops

Loop cues continue until explicitly stopped. Keep them quieter than one-shot feedback and always stop them when the visible state ends.

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
loading	An interface is fetching or waiting	Long invisible background work
processing	Sustained generation, rendering, or computation is running	A single completed operation
recording	Audio or video capture is live	The one-shot start-recording confirmation
connecting	A device or live session is searching for a connection	The one-shot connected outcome
scanning	Content or nearby devices are being discovered	An invisible indefinite background task
streaming	Live data or media continues to flow	Ordinary local playback

Media

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
play	Media begins or resumes playback	Starting an unrelated background process
pause	Media pauses at its current position	Ending or completing playback
seek	A scrubber or playhead moves to a new point	Ordinary scrolling
volume-change	Playback loudness moves to a new level	Every incremental key repeat at full volume
skip-next	Playback advances to the next item	Seeking within the current item
skip-previous	Playback returns to the previous item	Back navigation outside media

System

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
connect	A device, service, or live session becomes available	Routine data refreshes
disconnect	A device, service, or live session goes offline	Errors that need user correction
lock	Access closes or a protected state engages	Destructive deletion
unlock	Access opens or a protected state disengages	Generic success feedback
wake	A dormant device or interface becomes active	Unlocking protected access
sleep	A device or interface enters a dormant state	Disconnecting from a service

Reward

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
reward	A small unit of value is awarded	Paid transactions
level-up	Rank or capability increases	Routine progress increments
achievement	A rare milestone deserves celebration	Frequent task completion
streak	Repeated participation extends an active streak	A single completed task
badge	A collectible distinction is awarded	A small repeatable unit of value
bonus	An unexpected extra reward is revealed	A normal expected completion

Commerce

Cue	Use it for	Do not use it for
add-to-cart	An item enters a cart or pending order	A completed purchase
remove-from-cart	An item leaves a cart or pending order	Refund confirmation
checkout	A cart advances into the payment flow	A completed transaction
purchase	A paid transaction or value exchange completes	Adding an item to a cart
coupon	A discount or promotional code is accepted	A completed payment
refund	Value returns after a completed transaction	Removing an unpaid cart item

Adding a cue

A new semantic cue must:

1. Describe a distinct interaction outcome that cannot be expressed by an existing cue.
2. Have a visible or haptic counterpart. UI SFX never makes audio the only source of meaning.
3. Work in all twelve packs.
4. Include an intended use and a misuse boundary.
5. Keep its non-looping duration below 1.5 seconds.