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supersonic

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Etymology and origin of the English word supersonic

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1919 the Electrician
Ultimate origin
Latin sonus
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English sonic
English supersonic
From the same root
English ultrasonic ← sonic

Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˌsuːpəˈsɒnɪk/, /ˌsjuːpəˈsɒnɪk/[1]
  • US: /ˌsuːpɚˈsɑːnɪk/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English super- + sonic.[2][3][4][5][6] Barnhart and Merriam-Webster take the second part directly from Latin sonus (“sound”) with the English suffix -ic.[7][8] The OED and Klein compare ultrasonic.[2][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of sound waves or vibrations with a frequency above the range of human hearing: 1919, in the Electrician.[2][3][8][7]

Semantic evolution

The word first described sound waves too high for the human ear.[2][3] In the 1930s it was applied to speeds greater than the speed of sound and to aircraft capable of them: the OED's first quotation is from 1932, Etymonline's from 1934, and Barnhart's from 1945.[2][3][7] The older meaning then passed to ultrasonic, recorded from 1923.[3] From 1947, with the rise of jet aircraft, it was used colloquially for anything very fast,[2] and in British children's slang for something wonderful: "Isn't he simply supersonic!"[9][2] A noun for a supersonic aircraft is recorded from 1947 in the OED and 1962 in Barnhart,[2][7] and supersonics, the science of the original phenomena, from 1928.[7]

Timeline

  • 1919 – of sound waves with a frequency above the range of human hearing.[2][3][8][7]
  • c. 1924 – noun, a supersonic wave or frequency.[8]
  • 1928 – supersonics, the science of supersonic phenomena.[7]
  • 1932 – of speeds greater than the speed of sound, and of aircraft able to reach them.[2] Etymonline dates this sense to 1934 and Barnhart to 1945.[3][7]
  • 1947 – colloquial, very fast; also excellent, wonderful.[2][9]
  • 1947 – noun, an aircraft faster than sound.[2] Barnhart dates the noun to 1962.[7]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Faster than the speed of sound, or able to travel at such speeds: a supersonic airliner.[10][2][4]
  2. Of sound waves or vibrations, having a frequency above the range of human hearing; now usually called ultrasonic.[8][2][3]
  3. (colloquial) Very fast.[2][4]
  4. (slang) Excellent, wonderful.[2][9]

Noun

  1. A supersonic aircraft.[2][7]
  2. A supersonic wave or frequency.[8]

Word family

  • supersonically

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  6. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  8. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  9. ^ a b c Green, Jonathon (2010), Green's Dictionary of Slang, London: Chambers; digital ed. 2016–, https://greensdictofslang.com
  10. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
Cite this entry

“Supersonic.” Etymologically, 2 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/en/supersonic. Accessed 2 Nov. 2026.

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