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Synonyms

sound wave

American  

noun

Physics.

  1. a longitudinal wave in an elastic medium, especially a wave producing an audible sensation.

sound wave British  

noun

  1. a wave that propagates sound

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of sound wave

First recorded in 1865–70

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.

It has been explained to BBC Sport that the technology used in Australia has a two-frame gap between the pictures and the sound wave.

From BBC • Nov. 22, 2025

As such, one could say that life on Earth as we know it in some way originated from a sound wave.

From Salon • Jun. 3, 2025

The researchers then placed a sound wave generator on each side of the device and slanted them so that sound waves travel through the underlying platform to enter the droplet.

From Science Daily • Mar. 13, 2024

“The sound wave, because it’s so big, can’t see fine detail,” says David Jourdan, an engineer whose company Nauticos has led three expeditions in search of Earhart.

From National Geographic • Jan. 30, 2024

In a sound wave, then, there is no displacement wherever the air molecules are at a normal density.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones

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.