ambient

American  

[am-bee-uhnt] / ˈæm bi ənt /

adjective

1. of the surrounding area or environment: The temperature in the display case was 20° lower than the ambient temperature.

   Your voice mail picked up some ambient noise from airplanes and lawn mowers.

   The temperature in the display case was 20° lower than the ambient temperature.

2. completely surrounding; enveloping.

   Many pollutants are present in ambient air in relatively low concentrations.

3. creating a certain reaction or mood, often a subconscious one, by being wherever people tend to be.

   ambient advertising on a shopping cart.

4. pertaining to or noting sounds that create a peaceful and relaxed atmosphere.

   I stream ambient ocean sounds to help me fall asleep.

5. pertaining to or noting close and constant social contact and communication fostered by the internet or the use of digital devices.

   social media sites that enable ambient intimacy and awareness.

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noun

1. ambient music.

ambient British  

/ ˈæmbɪənt /

adjective

1. of or relating to the immediate surroundings

   the ambient temperature was 15°C

2. creating a relaxing atmosphere

   ambient music

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noun

1. informal ambient music

Other Word Forms

• unambient
  adjective
• unambiently
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of ambient

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin ambient- (stem of ambiēns, present participle of ambīre “to go around”), equivalent to amb- ambi- + -i- “go” + -ent- -ent

Explanation

Ambient is an adjective used to describe an aspect of the environment that completely surrounds you, but in a mellow way, like ambient music played softly throughout a restaurant, or the ambient orange glow during a setting sun. Ambient describes some pervasive quality of the surrounding environment, like the ambient lighting in a movie theater, or the ambient temperature of a room. Most times when you’re hearing silence, you’re hearing some ambient noises too, like the hum of a refrigerator or the whistle of a breeze. Usually ambient describes a quiet or peaceful quality, but it can be aggressive too, like the ambient drone of war planes flying above that you can hear no matter where you hide.

Example Sentences

In experiments, the researchers showed that the material could release enough heat to boil water under ambient conditions, something that has been difficult to accomplish in this area of research.

From Science Daily • May 15, 2026

Two toxic air contaminants present in California’s ambient air, acrolein and ethylene oxide, appear to be much stronger carcinogens than previously known, California environmental health officials announced Thursday.

From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2026

"We are working on basically adapting our public realm to do a couple of things to help to reduce ambient temperatures," Kit Larson, chief executive of the organization Houston Downtown+, told AFP.

From Barron's • May 12, 2026

This description echoes through the film in its regard for plants, which here seem to possess a sort of ambient awareness.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026

These include not only all of the genres of music, the verbal languages, and accents, but also the mechanical, digital, human, and animal noises, and all of the ambient sounds around us.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

Related Words

• atmosphere
• environment
• feeling
• mood
• surroundings
• trend