supersonic
[soo-per-son-ik]
- greater than the speed of sound waves through air.
- capable of achieving such speed: a supersonic plane.
- ultrasonic.
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Origin of supersonic
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
rapidprompthastybriskimmediatehurriedexpeditiousswiftunexpectednimblesuddenabruptquickspeedyagilehotairplaneplaneshortflyingExamples from the Web for supersonic
Contemporary Examples
The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps also use the supersonic F/A-18 Hornet strike fighter to guide other jets to their targets.
Result: a supersonic, pulsating jackhammer of 1,700-degree F exhaust gas.
In 1994 she redesigned the interiors of the supersonic Concorde for Air France.
A lot of things that look like promises turn out to be mirages - like supersonic passenger aircraft in the 1960s for example.
Historical Examples
It coughed once, sending a beam of supersonic energy into the bodies of both men.
The Penal ClusterIvar Jorgensen (AKA Randall Garrett)
During the next two days, events moved with supersonic speed for the Cubs.
Dan Carter Cub ScoutMildred A. Wirt
Lee stared at the apparition which swiftly materialized out of the ground haze at the plane's supersonic speed.
The BrainAlexander Blade
Flying at supersonic speed, they reached the area of the lost missile in the South Atlantic soon after lunch.
Tom Swift and the Electronic HydrolungVictor Appleton
A tiny doll, proportioned like a woman, dashed toward me, shrilling in a supersonic shriek.
The Door Through SpaceMarion Zimmer Bradley
supersonic
- being, having, or capable of reaching a speed in excess of the speed of soundsupersonic aircraft
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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
Word Origin and History for supersonic
adj.
1919, "of or having to do with sound waves beyond the limit of human hearing," from super- + sonic. Attested from 1934 in sense of "exceeding the speed of sound" (especially as a measure of aircraft speed), leaving the original sense to ultrasonic (1923).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
supersonic
(sōō′pər-sŏn′ĭk)- Having, caused by, or relating to a speed greater than the speed of sound in a given medium, especially air.
- Of or relating to sound waves beyond human audibility.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
supersonic
[sōō′pər-sŏn′ĭk]
- Having a speed greater than that of sound in a designated medium, usually air; having a speed greater than Mach 1. Compare hypersonic subsonic transonic.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.