acoustic

1 of 2

adjective

acous·​tic ə-ˈkü-stik How to pronounce acoustic (audio)
variants or acoustical
ə-ˈkü-sti-kəl How to pronounce acoustic (audio)
Synonyms of acoustic
1
: of or relating to the sense or organs of hearing, to sound, or to the science of sounds
acoustic apparatus of the ear
acoustic energy
: such as
a
: deadening or absorbing sound
acoustic tile
b
: operated by or utilizing sound waves
2
: of, relating to, or being a musical instrument whose sound is not electronically modified
acoustically
ə-ˈkü-sti-k(ə-)lē How to pronounce acoustic (audio)
adverb

acoustic

2 of 2

variant of acoustics

Synonyms of acoustic

Relevance

Adjective

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of acoustic in a Sentence

Adjective the acoustic properties of a room She loves listening to acoustic folk music. an acoustic performance of a rock-and-roll song
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Adjective
There's no doubt that Riley Green's acoustic performances are incredibly popular. — David Hookstead Outkick, FOXNews.com, 26 Oct. 2026 Mayer helmed vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keyboards, and synths himself, as well as programming. — Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 23 Oct. 2026 In addition to co-writing and co-producing the song, Mayer is credited with acoustic and electric guitar, keyboards/synths and programming. — Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 23 Oct. 2026 This handsome volume runs through 90 European venues, breaking down their unique features, acoustic qualities and performance histories (recent and not so). — Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune, 22 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for acoustic

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

acoustic borrowed from Medieval Latin acousticus, acūsticus, borrowed from Greek akoustikós, from akoustós "heard, audible" (verbal adjective of akoúein "to hear," going back to Indo-European *h2kou̯s-) + -ikos -ic entry 1; acoustical from acoustic + -al entry 1 — more at hear

First Known Use

Adjective

1635, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of acoustic was in 1635

Phrases Containing acoustic

Rhymes for acoustic

See All Rhymes for acoustic

Browse Nearby Words

acousmatic
acoustic
acoustical feedback
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Acoustic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/acoustic. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

acoustic

adjective
acous·​tic ə-ˈkü-stik How to pronounce acoustic (audio)
variants or acoustical
-sti-kəl How to pronounce acoustic (audio)
1
: of or relating to the sense or organs of hearing, to sound, or to the science of sounds: as
a
: deadening or absorbing sound
b
: operated by or using sound waves
2
: of, relating to, or being a musical instrument whose sound is not electronically modified
acoustic guitar
acoustically
-sti-k(ə-)lē How to pronounce acoustic (audio)
adverb

Medical Definition

acoustic

adjective
acous·​tic ə-ˈkü-stik How to pronounce acoustic (audio)
variants or acoustical
-sti-kəl How to pronounce acoustic (audio)
: of or relating to the sense or organs of hearing, to sound, or to the science of sounds
acoustic apparatus of the ear
acoustic energy
: as
a
: deadening or absorbing sound
acoustic tile
b
: operated by or utilizing sound waves
acoustically
-k(ə-)lē How to pronounce acoustic (audio)
adverb
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of milieu

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All