shock wave

noun

|Updated on: 19 Jul 2018

Examples: shock wave in a Sentence

Definition of shock wave

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

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See shock wave defined for kids

Examples of shock wave in a Sentence

The decision created a shock wave of criticism.

Recent Examples of shock wave from the Web

The center typically receives reports of near Earth objects (NEOs) several times a night, but this one sent shock waves across the sky-scanning community.

— joe pappalardo, Popular Mechanics, "For Just 2nd Time Ever, Meteor Hunters Recover Chunks of Rock They Tracked From Space," 9 July 2018
Anyway, a socialist primary victory sends political shock waves among our fellow Democrats, the intensifying divide over the left's agenda up next.

— Fox News, "Trump, Democrats gear up for Supreme Court showdown," 3 July 2018
Photo: Getty On Wednesday afternoon, the real shock wave hit.

— gerald f. seib, WSJ, "Immigration Fight, High Court Rulings Draw Deeper Partisan Lines," 27 June 2018
The resulting vacuum condition sucks air from the lungs while the shock wave pulverizes bone and ruptures or liquefies the internal organs of anyone within about 50 yards.

— william langewiesche, The Atlantic, "An Extraordinarily Expensive Way to Fight ISIS," 21 June 2018
News Friday of Leonard seeking a trade from the Spurs sent shock waves and snark across social media, both far and especially near in San Antonio.

— rené a. guzman, San Antonio Express-News, "Not all Spurs fans are angry at Kawhi Leonard for possibly wanting out from the Spurs," 16 June 2018
Union workers, middle-class professionals, and rural people turned out in many cities, sending shock waves across the region.

— The Christian Science Monitor, "The source of Jordan’s river of discontent," 11 June 2018
But analysts watching the start of talks since late winter say that a strike this year could send shock waves across the economy because UPS has grown dramatically in the last decade, along with its unionized workforce.

— grace schneider, The Courier-Journal, "UPS hourly workers vote to strike, if needed, amid contract talks," 6 June 2018
The local government reported more than 1,100 people injured, mostly by flying glass broken by the shock wave of the meteor explosion.

— nina burleigh, Newsweek, "We Can Save Ourselves From Earth-Killing Asteroids, But Someone Has to Pay," 11 June 2015

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'shock wave.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of shock wave

1907

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

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SHOCK WAVE Defined for English Language Learners

shock wave

noun

Definition of shock wave for English Language Learners

: a movement of extremely high air pressure that is caused by an explosion, an earthquake, etc.
: a usually negative response or reaction that many people have to a particular thing