Kilohertzes

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A unit of frequency equal to one thousand hertz, commonly used in the measurement of sound waves or electromagnetic signals
2. Referring to the frequency of periodic waves, such as radio waves, measured as thousands of cycles per second
3. Denoting a frequency component in telecommunications and audio signals, often indicating the pitch or clarity of sound perceived by humans

Etymology: "Kilohertzes" is the plural of "kilohertz," a unit equal to one thousand hertz, and the plural form follows the usual English pattern of adding "-es" to nouns ending in "z." The unit itself is built from two parts: "kilo-," from the Greek "khilioi" meaning "thousand," and "hertz," named after the German physicist Heinrich Hertz, who demonstrated electromagnetic waves in the late 1880s. The hertz was adopted as the unit of cycles per second in his honour, so the prefix simply scales that unit up by a thousand. Attaching "kilo-" to an existing unit name is a standard way of building measurement terms in the metric system, which is why the word is so transparent. Its structure mirrors "kilogram" and "kilometre," where the same Greek prefix multiplies a base unit.

Synonyms: kHz