Supersonic

How to spell supersonic

10 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce supersonic

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does supersonic mean?

1. adjectiveTravelling at a speed greater than the speed of sound.

Supersonic in a sentence

• The fighter jet reached supersonic speed within minutes of takeoff.

• Engineers tested the missile under supersonic conditions in the wind tunnel.

Where does supersonic come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This is a modern scientific compound assembled from Latin building blocks. The first part, super-, means 'above' or 'beyond', and the core, son, comes from the Latin sonus, meaning 'sound'. Joined with the adjective ending -ic, the word literally describes something that goes beyond sound, that is, faster than sound travels through air. It was coined in the early twentieth century as aviation and ballistics began to grapple with speeds approaching and exceeding the speed of sound, becoming common around the 1930s and especially after high-speed flight took off in the 1940s. The same sonus root sits inside familiar relatives such as 'sonic', 'resonate', and 'sonar', which is a handy reminder that the middle of the word is spelled with 'son', not 'sun'.

How the word is built

• super- (above, beyond)
• son (from Latin sonus: sound)
• -ic (adjective suffix)