reverberate
Americanverb (used without object)
-
to reecho or resound.
Her singing reverberated through the house.
-
Physics. to be reflected many times, as sound waves from the walls of a confined space.
-
to rebound or recoil.
-
to be deflected, as flame in a reverberatory furnace.
verb (used with object)
-
to echo back or reecho (sound).
-
to cast back or reflect (light, heat, etc.).
-
to subject to reflected heat, as in a reverberatory furnace.
adjective
verb
-
(intr) to resound or re-echo
the explosion reverberated through the castle
-
to reflect or be reflected many times
-
(intr) to rebound or recoil
-
(intr) (of the flame or heat in a reverberatory furnace) to be deflected onto the metal or ore on the hearth
-
(tr) to heat, melt, or refine (a metal or ore) in a reverberatory furnace
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
reverberationnoun
-
reverberatornoun
-
reverberantadjective
-
reverberativeadjective
-
unreverberatedadjective
-
unreverberatingadjective
-
unreverberativeadjective
-
reverberantlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
reverberatesimple
-
reverberatessimple
-
have reverberatedperfect
-
has reverberatedperfect
-
am reverberatingprogressive
-
are reverberatingprogressive
-
is reverberatingprogressive
-
have been reverberatingperfect progressive
-
has been reverberatingperfect progressive
Past
-
reverberatedsimple
-
had reverberatedperfect
-
was reverberatingprogressive
-
were reverberatingprogressive
-
had been reverberatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of reverberate
First recorded in 1540–50, reverberate is from the Latin word reverberātus (past participle of reverberāre to strike back). See reverberant, -ate 1
Explanation
If you give a loud shout in a cavernous place, like a gym or a church, the sound of your voice will reverberate throughout the room. Reverberate means sound waves traveling back and forth, as in an echo. Often we use reverberate to talk about sound, or sometimes light. If a noise echoes for a long time, we can say the space reverberates with that noise. You may have heard of a reverb effect in audio processing, which is basically a long echo. We also use the word metaphorically to describe the impact of huge events. For example, the 2008 mortgage crisis in the U.S. reverberated throughout the world’s economy, causing a global recession.
Vocabulary lists containing reverberate
Grade 9, List 2
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The Diary of Anne Frank
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"Your performance across the whole arc of the game doesn't matter as much as having a signature moment that'll play well, that'll reverberate in the viral confines of social media," Serazio said.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
The repercussions of this method still reverberate through Panettiere’s life today, with the actress musing: “I’ve often wondered whether—unintentionally—I’ve brought on my traumas because I’m wired to think they’re good for me.”
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 26, 2026
The effects on their family of five still reverberate.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 8, 2026
Should the oil shock continue much longer than anticipated, the economic effects could reverberate throughout the global economy.
From Barron's ● May 21, 2026
He spoke softly, without the twang that in some seemed to reverberate from one end of the state to the other.
From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger
The thud of fists walloping punching bags reverberates through the gym from morning until evening.
From Barron's ● Jun. 17, 2026
One can be thought of as “ripple-out” inflation, where a shock to an economically ubiquitous input — like energy — reverberates throughout other goods and sectors that depend upon it.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 3, 2026
Inflation erodes confidence in the future; the psychic blow of 2008 still reverberates; young voters, especially millennials, remember those days of anxiety.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026
As a Haitian-American, Jeannoel said she understands firsthand how the legal battle around TPS alongside the political crisis in Haiti reverberates beyond recipients to their families.
From Salon ● Apr. 30, 2026
Night has fallen, and outside the cave, thunder reverberates.
From "An Ember in the Ashes" by Sabaa Tahir
Burns punched the air as a rapturous roar - which ripped across the course - reverberated in his ears.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
The plant’s low rumble reverberated across the surrounding desert, unusually green from a recent rain.
From Salon ● May 10, 2026
With uncertainty looming abroad, Kent’s resignation reverberated in Washington, where it exposed new divisions over the administration’s handling of the war.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 17, 2026
The April tariff-ignited market rout reverberated across equites and fixed-income markets.
From Barron's ● Feb. 26, 2026
Most teachers avoided controversial subjects, but Mr. Brown’s classroom reverberated with them.
From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz
O’Regan further pointed out that weakness in the Korean chip sector could be reverberating across the sector on Friday.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
Those changes have rocked the exhibition business in ways that are still reverberating today.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2026
AFP journalists in Tel Aviv heard two near-simultaneous waves of explosions reverberating across the city.
From Barron's ● Mar. 5, 2026
The audience seem to know every word - with the whole room reverberating to the declarative, "I don't need a boyfriend", that crops up in the second verse of Nice To Each Other.
From BBC ● Feb. 27, 2026
The dark shadows of a crowd of people pressed in around them, pushing nearer; Harry felt the ground beneath his head reverberating with their footsteps.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
