decibel
a unit used to express the intensity of a sound wave, equal to 20 times the common logarithm of the ratio of the pressure produced by the sound wave to a reference pressure, usually 0.0002 microbar.
a unit of power ratio, the number of units being equal to a constant times the logarithm to the base 10 of the intensities of two sources.
a unit used to compare two voltages or currents, equal to 20 times the common logarithm of the ratio of the voltages or currents measured across equal resistances. Abbreviation: dB, db
Origin of decibel
1Words Nearby decibel
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use decibel in a sentence
The decibel levels fell a fraction, but we were still in the heart of a crowd that believed in Brazil.
Germany Humiliates World Cup Host Brazil 7-1 in Semifinal Slaughter | Tunku Varadarajan | July 8, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTSome men raise their voices when the argument heats up, and if women try to match their decibel level, they risk sounding shrill.
Bill O’Reilly’s Macho Moment in On-Air Confrontation With Laura Ingraham | Lauren Ashburn | April 5, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTTheir mission: to raise the awareness of poverty to the decibel level of other hot-button media issues.
Some Catholic Leaders Speaking Out Against Paul Ryan’s Budget-Cutting | Lauren Ashburn | August 20, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTThe decibel level of all this at Fox and the usual redoubts will be deafening.
Michael Tomasky on Obama’s Delusions About the GOP’s ‘Fever’ Breaking | Michael Tomasky | June 7, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTMaybe it was the fact that the candidates were sitting around a table, which clearly lowered the decibel level.
British Dictionary definitions for decibel
/ (ˈdɛsɪˌbɛl) /
a unit for comparing two currents, voltages, or power levels, equal to one tenth of a bel
a similar unit for measuring the intensity of a sound. It is equal to ten times the logarithm to the base ten of the ratio of the intensity of the sound to be measured to the intensity of some reference sound, usually the lowest audible note of the same frequency
- Abbreviation: dB
- See also perceived noise decibel
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
Scientific definitions for decibel
[ dĕs′ə-bəl ]
A unit used to measure the power of a signal, such as an electrical signal or sound, relative to some reference level. An increase of ten decibels in the power of a signal is equivalent to increasing its power by a factor of ten. As a measure of sound intensity, a zero-decibel reference is stipulated to be the lowest level audible to the human ear; the speaking voice of most people ranges from 45 to 75 decibels.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for decibel
[ (des-uh-buhl, des-uh-bel) ]
A unit of measurement of the volume of sounds.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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