acoustics

noun

(used with a singular verb) Physics. the branch of physics that deals with sound and sound waves.

(used with a plural verb) the qualities or characteristics of a room, auditorium, stadium, etc., that determine the audibility or fidelity of sounds in it.

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Origin:
1675–85; see acoustic, -ics

Related forms

hy·per·a·cous·tics, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged

adjective Also, a·cous·ti·cal.

pertaining to the sense or organs of hearing, to sound, or to the science of sound.

(of a building material) designed for controlling sound.

Music.

of, pertaining to, or being a musical instrument whose sound is not electrically enhanced or modified.

arranged for or made up of such instruments: an acoustic solo; an acoustic group.

noun

Obsolete. a remedy for deafness or imperfect hearing.

Origin:
1595–1605; < Greek akoustikós. See acouasm, -tic

Related forms

a·cous·ti·cal·ly, adverb

non·a·cous·tic, adjective, noun

non·a·cous·ti·cal, adjective

non·a·cous·ti·cal·ly, adverb

un·a·cous·tic, adjective

un·a·cous·ti·cal, adjective

un·a·cous·ti·cal·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To acoustics

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Acoustics is always a great word to know.

So is interrobang. Does it mean:

an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle.

a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.

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Collins

World English Dictionary

acoustic or acoustical (əˈkuːstɪk)

—*adj*
1.	of or related to sound, the sense of hearing, or acoustics
2.	designed to respond to, absorb, or control sound: an acoustic tile
3.	(of a musical instrument or recording) without electronic amplification: an acoustic bass; an acoustic guitar

[C17: from Greek akoustikos, from akouein to hear]

acoustical or acoustical

—*adj*

[C17: from Greek akoustikos, from akouein to hear]

a'coustically or acoustical

—*adv*

acoustics (əˈkuːstɪks)

—n
1.	(functioning as singular) the scientific study of sound and sound waves
2.	(functioning as plural) the characteristics of a room, auditorium, etc, that determine the fidelity with which sound can be heard within it

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

acoustic

c.1600, from Fr. acoustique, from Gk. akoustikos "pertaining to hearing," from akoustos "heard, audible," from akouein "to hear," from copulative prefix a- + koein "to mark, perceive, hear," from PIE base *(s)keu- "to notice, observe" (see caveat). Acoustic guitar (as opposed

to electric) attested by 1958.

acoustics

1680s, "science of sound," from acoustic (also see -ics). Meaning "acoustic properties" of a building, etc., attested from 1885.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage

Medical Dictionary

acoustic a·cous·tic (ə-k&oomacr;'stĭk) or a·cous·ti·cal (-stĭ-kəl)
adj.
Of or relating to sound, the sense of hearing, or the perception of sound.

acoustics a·cous·tics (ə-k&oomacr;'stĭks)
n.
The scientific study of sound, especially of its generation, transmission, and reception.

American Heritage

Science Dictionary

acoustics

(ə-k

'stĭks) Pronunciation Key

(click for larger image in new window)

(Used with a singular verb) The scientific study of sound and its transmission.
(Used with a plural verb) The total effect of sound, especially as produced in an enclosed space.

Example sentences

Fine acoustics in a hall certainly enhances listening pleasure.

The stern face across the room, picking up on their confusion through a trick

in the apartment's acoustics, broke into a smile.

The effective use of implied sub-spaces, seating arrangements, lighting and

acoustics was missing.

And remember, there is no air-conditioning in the house, for fear that the whir

of motors would affect the glorious acoustics.

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acoustic resistance audio frequency cosmetic damp electroacoustics inertance

Matching Quote

"As it grew later in the afternoon, and we rowed leisurely up the gentle stream, shut in between fragrant and blooming banks, where we had first pitched our tent, and drew nearer to the fields where our lives had passed, we seemed to detect the hues of our native sky in the southwest horizon. The sun was just setting behind the edge of a wooded hill, so rich a sunset as would never have ended but for some reason unknown to men, and to be marked with brighter colors than ordinary in the scroll of time. Though the shadows of the hills were beginning to steal over the stream, the whole river valley undulated with mild light, purer and more memorable than the noon. For so day bids farewell even to solitary vales uninhabited by man. Two herons (Ardea herodias), with their long and slender limbs relieved against the sky, were seen traveling high over our heads,—their lofty and silent flight, as they were wending their way at evening, surely not to alight in any marsh on the earth's surface, but, perchance, on the other side of our atmosphere, a symbol for the ages to study.... The last vestiges of daylight at length disappeared, and as we rowed silently along with our backs toward home through the darkness, only a few stars being visible, we had little to say, but sat absorbed in thought, or in silence listened to the monotonous sound of our oars, a sort of rudimental music, suitable for the ear of Night and the acoustics of her dimly lighted halls;
"Pulsae referunt ad sidera valles,"
and the valleys echoed the sound of the stars."

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