microphone

American  

[mahy-kruh-fohn] / ˈmaɪ krəˌfoʊn /

noun

microphones plural

1. an instrument capable of transforming sound waves into changes in electric currents or voltage, used in recording or transmitting sound.

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microphone British  

/ ˈmaɪkrəˌfəʊn /

noun

1. Informal name: mike.  a device used in sound-reproduction systems for converting sound into electrical energy, usually by means of a ribbon or diaphragm set into motion by the sound waves. The vibrations are converted into the equivalent audio-frequency electric currents See also carbon microphone Compare loudspeaker

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• microphones
  plural

Etymology

Origin of microphone

1875–80; micro-, in sense “enlarging” (extracted from microscope ) + -phone

Explanation

A microphone is an electric device that amplifies the sound of a voice or instrument. If you're going to stand up in front of a large crowd and want to be heard, you better use a microphone. Microphones require electricity and amplifiers to work — what they do is take a sound and convert it into an electrical signal. That signal can then be amplified and sent to a speaker or recorded. Performers can sing softly into a microphone and still be heard clearly by an audience member at the very back of a huge concert hall. The popularity of radio and film inspired this meaning of microphone — originally, the word meant "ear trumpet for the hard-of-hearing."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

microphone microphones

So when Burnham decided to break with tradition and make his inaugural address Monday accompanied by only a minimalist microphone stand, a vocal faction of the electorate worried they’d lose more than the lectern.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Merlin has often been called a "Shazam for birds" - likening it to Apple's app letting users identify a song playing using a phone's microphone.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

Known as oto-acoustic emissions, these sounds can be detected by placing a sensitive microphone inside the ear canal.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 19, 2026

Pegasus can be installed surreptitiously onto a target's smartphone and read messages, geolocate and secretly turn on the device's camera and microphone -- effectively turning the phone into a pocket spy.

From Barron's ● Jul. 16, 2026

“Take your seats, please,” he said into the microphone.

From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

He and fellow pundits Joe Hart and Micah Richards swapped their microphones for oars and took to the Hudson River in New York.

From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026

His recording technique was “subjective,” as he put it, placing microphones to either side of the drums or piano so that we hear them as the musician does when playing them.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026

It is being recorded as part of work harnessing hidden microphones, cameras and artificial intelligence to reveal the secrets of species living deep in the rainforest and help protect them.

From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026

How will he react when 185 million microphones are pointed at him?

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026

When a group of tourists walked onto the bridge, she could hear them clearing their throats, as if through microphones.

From "Interpreter of Maladies" by Jhumpa Lahiri