phonometer

[fuh-nom-i-ter, foh-]

noun

1. a device for measuring the intensity of a sound.

phonometer

/ fəˈnɒmɪtə, ˌfəʊnəˈmɛtrɪk /

noun

1. an apparatus that measures the intensity of sound, esp one calibrated in phons

Other Word Forms

• phonometric adjective
• phonometry noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of phonometer¹

First recorded in 1815–25; phono- + -meter

Example Sentences

Some of Edison's inventions have a character at present of little more than picturesque playfulness, such as the Phonograph, perhaps the most remarkable of these minor inventions; the Aerophone, by which sounds are amplified without loss of distinctness; the Megaphone, an instrument which, inserted in the ear, so magnifies sounds that faint whispers may be heard a thousand feet; the Phonometer, for measuring the force of the soundwaves caused by the human voice; the Microtasimeter, for measuring small variations in temperature.

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So it is only necessary to twist the phonometer about on its pivot until the sound is received most loudly in the horns and the band of light is greatest.

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Banging and pounding, we forged ahead, straining our eyes to watch the road, the distance, the time, and the phonometer all at once.

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The sound enters the two horns of the phonometer, is focused at the neck, and strikes on a delicate diaphragm, behind which is a needle.

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Without the phonometer to warn us, it must inevitably have met us and blocked our escape over the road ahead.

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