sound wave

noun

Definition of sound wave

1 : sound entry 1 sense 1a

2 sound waves plural : longitudinal pressure waves in any material medium regardless of whether they constitute audible sound earthquake waves and ultrasonic waves are sometimes called sound waves

Examples of sound wave in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The first wave to emerge from an earthquake, called the P-wave, is an acoustic, or sound wave. — Becky Oskin, Scientific American, 29 Jan. 2013 And it was greeted with a sound wave of validation from fans around the metro. — Amy Drew Thompson, orlandosentinel.com, 16 May 2021 Two female engineers rode this sound wave to launch a purposeful project called Techsetters — a podcast that spotlights diverse gems in the STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). — Bérénice Magistretti, Forbes, 4 May 2021 It’s almost like a sound wave, toggling between expansive and compressive. — Steven Levy, Wired, 16 Mar. 2021 The sound wave left its imprint on the CMB and, faintly, in the distribution of the galaxies. — Adrian Cho, Science | AAAS, 20 Nov. 2020 So where this wave reaches the seafloor or the ground surface, the rock can behave like a massive speaker, producing a very low-frequency sound wave in the air or water. — Scott K. Johnson, Ars Technica, 26 Sep. 2020 The seafloor motion can create a sound wave that travels across an ocean basin and re-enters the seafloor rock of an opposing coast. — Scott K. Johnson, Ars Technica, 26 Sep. 2020 The sides of the glass transmit the vibration to the surrounding air, creating a sound wave with a specific frequency. — Science Buddies, Scientific American, 26 Nov. 2015

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