deci·bel
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dec|i|bel — «DEHS uh behl», noun. 1. a unit for measuring the relative intensity of sounds, equal to 1/10 of a bel: »Most people speak in a range between 45 and 75 decibels (Wall Street Journal). 2. a unit for expressing power ratios, equivalent to ten times … Useful english dictionary
decibel — 1928, from DECI (Cf. deci ) + BEL (Cf. bel) (n.) … Etymology dictionary
decibel — One tenth of a bel; unit for expressing the relative intensity of sound on a logarithmic scale. [L. decimus, tenth, + bel] * * * deci·bel des ə bəl, .bel n 1 a) a unit for expressing the ratio of two amounts of electric or acoustic signal power… … Medical dictionary
decibel — /des euh bel , beuhl/, n. Physics. 1. a unit used to express the intensity of a sound wave, equal to 20 times the common logarithm of the ratio of the pressure produced by the sound wave to a reference pressure, usually 0.0002 microbar. 2. a unit … Universalium
decibel — ► NOUN ▪ a unit of measurement expressing the intensity of a sound or the power of an electrical signal. ORIGIN from DECI (Cf. ↑deci ) + bel, a unit (= 10 decibels) named after Alexander Graham Bell (1847 1922), inventor of the telephone … English terms dictionary
decibel — dec|i|bel [ˈdesıbel, bəl] n written abbreviation dB [Date: 1900 2000; Origin: deci + bel unit of sound power (20 21 centuries), from Alexander Graham Bell (1847 1922), US inventor] a unit for measuring the loudness of sound ▪ noise levels… … Dictionary of contemporary English
decibel — dec•i•bel [[t]ˈdɛs əˌbɛl, bəl[/t]] n. phs a unit used to express differences in power, esp. in acoustics or electronics: equal to ten times the common logarithm of the ratio of two signals Abbr.: dB • Etymology: 1925–30; deci +bel … From formal English to slang
decibel — /ˈdɛsəbɛl / (say desuhbel) noun a unit expressing the ratio between a power, voltage, current or sound intensity and a reference value, using a logarithmic scale; equal to one tenth of a bel. Symbol: dB {deci + bel} …
decibel — [des′ə bəl, bes′əbel΄] n. [ DECI + BEL] 1. Acoustics a numerical expression of the relative loudness of a sound: the difference in decibels between two sounds is ten times the common logarithm of the ratio of their power levels 2. Electronics… … English World dictionary
decibel — noun Etymology: International Scientific Vocabulary deci + bel Date: 1928 1. a. a unit for expressing the ratio of two amounts of electric or acoustic signal power equal to 10 times the common logarithm of this ratio b. a unit for expressing the… … New Collegiate Dictionary
