oscillation

American  

[os-uh-ley-shuhn] / ˌɒs əˈleɪ ʃən /

noun

1. an act or instance of oscillating.

2. a single swing or movement in one direction of an oscillating body.

3. fluctuation between beliefs, opinions, conditions, etc.

4. Physics.

   1. an effect expressible as a quantity that repeatedly and regularly fluctuates above and below some mean value, as the pressure of a sound wave or the voltage of an alternating current.

   2. a single fluctuation between maximum and minimum values in such an effect.

5. Mathematics.

   1. the difference between the least upper bound and the greatest lower bound of the functional values of a function in a given interval.

   2. Also called saltus.  the limit of the oscillation in an interval containing a given point, as the length of the interval approaches zero.

---

oscillation British  

/ ˌɒsɪˈleɪʃən /

noun

1. physics statistics

   1. regular fluctuation in value, position, or state about a mean value, such as the variation in an alternating current or the regular swinging of a pendulum

   2. a single cycle of such a fluctuation

2. the act or process of oscillating

---

oscillation Scientific  

/ ŏs′ə-lā′shən /

1. A repeating fluctuation in a physical object or quantity.

2. See also attractor harmonic motion

3. A single cycle of such fluctuation.

---

Other Word Forms

• oscillatory
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of oscillation

1650–60; < Latin oscillātiōn- (stem of oscillātiō ) a swinging, equivalent to oscillāt ( us ) ( see oscillate) + -iōn- -ion

Explanation

Oscillation is the process of moving back and forth regularly, like the oscillation of a fan that cools off the whole room, or the oscillation of a movie plot that makes you laugh and cry. Oscillation is from the Latin word oscillare for "to swing," so oscillation is when something is swinging back and forth. Rumor has it if you trace the word back far enough, you get to the word for “a little face” of Bacchus, Greek god of wine, people used to hang up in vineyards to swing in the breeze. When there's oscillation, something is going back and forth, like a hanging sculpture going to and fro in the backyard.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

oscillation

As they move through space, they can switch from one flavor to another in a process called oscillation.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 3, 2026

These vibrations produce distinct tones defined by two measurements, Mitman explained: an oscillation frequency and a damping time.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 1, 2026

This process, called oscillation, implies that neutrinos must have mass.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 12, 2026

"The only way this oscillation can happen is if neutrinos have mass," Caratelli explained.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 12, 2026

And the subsequent political history of the United States then became an oscillation between new versions of the old tension, which broke out in violence only on the occasion of the Civil War.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

Related Words

• vibration