subwoofer

American

[suhb-woof-er] / ˈsʌbˌwʊf ər /

noun

a loudspeaker component designed to reproduce only extremely low bass frequencies, generally below 125 Hz.

subwoofer British

/ ˈsʌbˌwuːfə /

noun

a loudspeaker for reproducing very low frequencies only

"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 subwoofer

sub- + woofer

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.

Burroughs even installed a subwoofer speaker beneath the sofa to give the garage the feel of a movie theater during family movie nights.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 22, 2025

Somewhere amid the scaffolding beneath the stage are 30-inch,10,000-watt subwoofer speakers designed and built by Rat Sound.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2024

Then they added technical equipment: a mixing unit, subwoofer, speakers and high-tech software for the sound system.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 16, 2024

Half the numbers end with a subwoofer boom that will rattle your insides.

From New York Times • Jun. 22, 2023

And the Mjolnur subwoofer was powerful enough to make my back teeth vibrate.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023