audio

1 of 3

adjective

au·​dio ˈȯ-dē-ˌō 

1

: of or relating to acoustic, mechanical, or electrical frequencies corresponding to normally audible sound waves which are of frequencies approximately from 15 to 20,000 hertz

an audio signal

2

a

: of or relating to sound or its reproduction and especially high-fidelity reproduction

an audio system

audio files

a recording with good audio quality

an audio stream of the concert

the film's audio engineers

b

: relating to or used in the transmission or reception of sound

an audio receiver

compare video

c

: of, relating to, or utilizing recorded sound

an audio presentation

audio

2 of 3

noun

1

: an audio signal

wirelessly transmits audio

broadly : sound entry 1

The picture was clear but the audio was very poor.

2

: electronic equipment primarily designed to handle signals of an audible frequency

connects to the car's audio

3

: the transmission, reception, or reproduction of sound

The trial is not being streamed via audio or video.

—Jon Brodkin

audio-

3 of 3

combining form

1

: hearing

audiometer

2

: sound

audiophile

3

: auditory and

audiovisual

Examples of audio in a Sentence

Adjective

The audio portion of the broadcast was fine but the picture was poor.

They listened to an audio recording of the speech.

Noun

The picture was clear but the audio was very poor.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

This episode was produced by Alejandra Marquez Janse and Karen Zamora, with audio engineering by Hannah Gluvna. — October 23, NPR, 23 Oct. 2026

Prosecutors say Strange copied 10 or more audio files from the drives without authority. — Eric Henderson, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026

Noun

Deadline hears that the BBC has held tentative discussions about whether Sounds could be folded in with iPlayer to create a single streaming service for video and audio, not unlike Netflix and YouTube. — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 24 Oct. 2026

The video, that did not have clear audio of the interaction, showed Bengals tight end Drew Sample stop to shake the vice president's hand as other players walked by. — Ryan Morik , Preston Mizell Outkick, FOXNews.com, 23 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

independent use of audio- as adjective

Noun

derivative of audio entry 1, or by shortening of words formed with audio- (as audio-signal)

Combining form

Latin audīre "to hear" + -o- — more at audible entry 1

Note: Probably first in audiometer—see etymology note there.

First Known Use

Adjective

1907, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1926, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing audio

• audio-animatronic
• audio-lingual

Rhymes for audio

• acknow
• aglow
• ago
• airglow
• aloe
• altho
• although
• ammo
• backflow
• backhoe
• banjo
• barbeau

Kids Definition

audio

1 of 3 adjective

au·​dio ˈȯd-ē-ˌō 

1

: of or relating to electrical or other frequencies occurring in the range of sound waves that can be heard

2

a

: of or relating to sound or its reproduction and especially accurate reproduction

bought new audio equipment

b

: relating to or used in sending or receiving sound compare video entry 2 sense 1

audio

2 of 3 noun

1

: the sending, receiving, or reproducing of sound

2

: the part of television or motion-picture equipment that deals with sound

audio-

3 of 3 combining form

1

: hearing

audiometer

2

: sound

audiophile

3

: auditory and

audiovisual

Etymology

Combining form

derived from Latin audire "to hear"