sonic

sonic — adjective

1. connected with the rate at which sound moves through the air (roughly 1,224 km/h

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

connected with the rate at which sound moves through the air (roughly 1,224 km/h at sea level) or with the general behaviour of sound waves

Example

Residents near the airport often hear sonic booms when aircraft break the sound barrier.

sonic boom — the loud noise made when an object exceeds the speed of sound

A fighter jet can reach supersonic speeds, meaning it flies faster than the sonic barrier.

Common collocations
  • sonic boom
  • sonic barrier
  • sonic speed
  • sonic wave
  • sonic property
Synonyms
  • acoustic

    broader — covers all aspects of sound, not specifically speed or wave behaviour

Antonyms
  • subsonic

    relating to speeds below the speed of sound in air

Grammar Patterns

sonic + noun

Usage Note

Most commonly appears in compound terms such as sonic boom, supersonic, subsonic, and ultrasonic. When used as a standalone adjective, it nearly always appears before a noun rather than after a linking verb.

Common Mistakes

The plane created a sound boom.
The plane created a sonic boom.
'sonic' specifically means 'relating to the speed of sound', not just any sound.

2. relating to sound frequencies that the human ear can hear, roughly between 20 an

2.adjectiveC1
Definition

relating to sound frequencies that the human ear can hear, roughly between 20 and 20,000 hertz

Example

Dogs can hear frequencies beyond the typical sonic range of humans.

sonic range — the band of frequencies audible to humans

The audio engineer adjusted the equaliser to boost the sonic frequencies that give music warmth.

Common collocations
  • sonic range
  • sonic frequency
  • sonic spectrum
  • sonic threshold
Synonyms
  • audible

    broader — anything that can be heard, without specifying a frequency range

Antonyms
  • ultrasonic

    frequencies above the human hearing range (above ~20,000 Hz)

  • infrasonic

    frequencies below the human hearing range (below ~20 Hz)

Grammar Patterns

sonic + noun

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 1 (SOUND SPEED): this sense refers to the frequency of sound waves, not their speed. The opposite ranges are ultrasonic (above the audible range) and infrasonic (below it).

Common Mistakes

A dog whistle uses sonic sound that humans cannot hear.
A dog whistle uses ultrasonic sound that humans cannot hear.
'sonic' means within the human audible range; frequencies above that are ultrasonic.

Word family

  • sonically
    adverbC1
  • subsonic
    adjectiveC1
  • supersonic
    adjectiveB2
  • ultrasonic
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Sonic, acoustic, and supersonic all relate to sound but in different ways. Sonic specifically refers to the speed of sound in air and the behaviour of sound waves — you hear a sonic boom, not an acoustic boom. Acoustic is the broader term, covering everything related to sound: acoustic guitars, acoustic insulation, the acoustic properties of a room. Supersonic is a subset meaning 'faster than the speed of sound' — a supersonic jet travels faster than sound, but 'sonic' alone does not imply exceeding that speed. For example, an acoustic engineer might measure the sonic properties of a wall panel, while a pilot talks about going supersonic.

sonic ↗acoustic ↗supersonic

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • sonic boom
  • sonic barrier
  • sonic speed
  • sonic range
  • sonic frequency
  • sonic spectrum
  • sonic threshold

Etymology

LatinEnglish

Derived from Latin sonus meaning 'sound', combined with the English adjective suffix -ic. The word entered scientific English in the early 1900s as a precise physics term and gained popular use in the mid-20th century with the development of supersonic aircraft and the sonic boom.