Skip to main content

decibela unit used to measure the intensity of sound

Part of speech: NOUN

Definition: a unit used to measure the intensity of sound

Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈdesɪbel/

Example Sentences

  • My neighbor's karaoke sessions regularly hit 90 decibels - louder than city traffic!
  • The library maintains a quiet 30 decibels, perfect for studying.
  • His snoring reaches 60 decibels - I need earplugs to sleep!

decibel

NOUN

[/ˈdesɪbel/]

a unit used to measure the intensity of sound

Measuring sound intensity levels
💡 Concept

Measuring sound intensity levels

Ring the bell to tell the decibel!
🎵 Rhyme

Ring the bell to tell the decibel!

Got the picture? Now let's practice.

🎤Pronunciation

🇺🇸 US/ˈdesɪbel/
🇬🇧 UK/ˈdesɪbel/

🌳Etymology

Prefixdeci--
Rootbel

Origin

The unit is named after Alexander Graham Bell, the Scottish-born inventor of the telephone and founder of Bell Laboratories. The term was adopted in the early 20th century to honor his contributions to telecommunications and signal measurement.

Breakdown

deci- (prefix meaning one-tenth, from Latin decimus) + bel (named unit honoring Alexander Graham Bell, representing a tenfold ratio in sound intensity).

🎵Rhyme

belltellwellcell
bell
tell
well
cell

🔗Collocations

noise level in decibels
decibel meter
high decibel
decibel reading
exceed 85 decibels
decibel scale

📝Examples

😄 Fun example

My neighbor's karaoke sessions regularly hit 90 decibels - louder than city traffic!

The library maintains a quiet 30 decibels, perfect for studying.

😄 Fun example

His snoring reaches 60 decibels - I need earplugs to sleep!

Construction work is limited to 55 decibels in residential areas.

📚Related Words

Synonyms

sound levelnoise unitacoustic measurementvolume unit

Antonyms

silencequietness

Related

soundnoisevolumeacousticmetermeasurementbellfrequency

Want to master 19,000+ words?

Sign up free for flashcards & quizzes.