shock wave

noun

1

: a compressional wave of high amplitude caused by a shock (as from an earthquake or explosion) to the medium through which the wave travels

2

: a violent often pulsating disturbance or reaction

shock waves of rebellion

Examples of shock wave in a Sentence

The decision created a shock wave of criticism.

Recent Examples on the Web

The international attention that Kimi K3 has garnered echoes the rise of DeepSeek in early 2025, when its R1 reasoning model sent shock waves through the global AI community. — John Liu, CNN Money, 24 July 2026

When the crash occurs, the object vaporizes and shock waves are sent reverberating through the Earth’s crust. — Megan Fahrney, ABC News, 24 July 2026

In contrast to this, in regions dominated by shock waves, magnetic fields are orientated at tangents. — Robert Lea, Space.com, 21 July 2026

Such shock waves occur when a massive star’s core runs out of fuel, implodes and blasts the rest of the star to smithereens. — Damien Pine, Scientific American, 21 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1846, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for shock wave

• agave
• behave
• concave
• conclave
• enclave
• engrave
• enslave
• forgave
• landgrave
• margrave
• shortwave
• aftershave

Kids Definition

shock wave

noun

: a wave formed by the sudden compression (as by an earthquake or supersonic aircraft) of the substance through which the wave travels