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• sonic boom
  sonic boom

  noun

  a loud noise caused by the shock wave generated by an aircraft moving at supersonic speed.
• boom, sonic
  boom, sonic

  The sharp, explosive sound generated by an airplane traveling at speeds greater than the speed of sound. The sonic boom follows the aircraft much like a wake follows a ship.

sonic boom

American  

noun

1. a loud noise caused by the shock wave generated by an aircraft moving at supersonic speed.

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sonic boom British  

noun

1. a loud explosive sound caused by the shock wave of an aircraft, etc, travelling at supersonic speed

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sonic boom Scientific  

1. A shock wave of compressed air caused by an aircraft traveling faster than the speed of sound. It is often audible as a loud, explosive sound, and it sometimes causes damage to structures on the ground.

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sonic boom ¹ Cultural  

1. See boom, sonic.

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boom, sonic ² Cultural  

1. The sharp, explosive sound generated by an airplane traveling at speeds greater than the speed of sound. The sonic boom follows the aircraft much like a wake follows a ship.

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Etymology

Origin of sonic boom

First recorded in 1950–55

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sonic boom

Shockwaves can form along wing surfaces and produce a sonic boom when crossing the sound barrier.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026

A meteor streaked across the New York City area in broad daylight on July 16, 2024, producing a sonic boom as it passed just south of the Statue of Liberty.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026

Although the X-59 was designed to minimize the disruptive sonic boom typically associated with supersonic aircraft, these initial supersonic flights are not intended to demonstrate that capability.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 1, 2026

Lindsay said the explosion from a missile intercepted above the hotel they were staying in, The Palm near Jebel Ali Port, sounded like a sonic boom.

From BBC ● Mar. 6, 2026

The telltale sonic boom indicated that the plane had pushed through the volatile transonic region into the state of smoother, all-supersonic flows.

From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly

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Related Words

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