sound wave

See synonyms for sound wave on Thesaurus.com
nounPhysics.
  1. a longitudinal wave in an elastic medium, especially a wave producing an audible sensation.

Origin of sound wave

1
First recorded in 1865–70

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use sound wave in a sentence

  • Similarly a sound wave in air is reflected upon striking the surface of a body.

    Physics | Willis Eugene Tower
  • During a complete vibration of the fork, therefore, the sound wave moves four times the length of the air column.

    Physics | Willis Eugene Tower
  • Let the curve A represent the sound wave sent out by one tuning fork and B, that sent out by the other.

    Physics | Willis Eugene Tower
  • The result was that I saw a wave of compression, of the same sort as a sound-wave in air, move through the throng.

    A Librarian's Open Shelf | Arthur E. Bostwick
  • Now the actions and reactions between the air-particles in a sound wave are purely mechanical.

    A Librarian's Open Shelf | Arthur E. Bostwick

British Dictionary definitions for sound wave

sound wave

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