Amplitude

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈæm.plɪ.tud/

Definitions

1. The maximum extent of a vibration or oscillation, measured from the position of equilibrium
2. The distance from the central point to the crest or trough of a wave is known as its extent, indicating the strength of oscillation or vibration within a certain context
3. The extent of variation in a wave or signal is characterized by its strength and is typically measured from equilibrium to its peak or lowest point

Etymology: The Latin "amplus" meant "large" or "spacious," and it gave English "ample" by a long route through Old French and Middle French. Its derivative "amplitudo" carried the sense of largeness or abundance, and the English noun keeps that sense of size. The "-itude" ending comes from Latin "-tūdō," a suffix that turned adjectives into nouns of quality, so "amplitude" literally names the state of being large. Physics later narrowed the sense. When the word was adopted into scientific English, it was applied to the size of a wave's swing, measured from its resting midpoint to its peak or trough. The meaning was extended from the extent of a thing to the extent of an oscillation, which is why the modern sense still reads as a measure of how far something reaches.

Synonyms: extent, range, breadth, scope, size

Antonyms: smallness, narrowness, insufficiency, contraction, deficiency