amplitude

noun

am·​pli·​tude ˈam-plə-ˌtüd 

-ˌtyüd

1

: the extent or range of a quality, property, process, or phenomenon: such as

a

: the extent of a vibratory movement (as of a pendulum) measured from the mean position to an extreme

b

: the maximum departure of the value of an alternating current or wave from the average value

2

: extent of dignity, excellence, or splendor

3

: the quality or state of being ample : fullness, abundance

… the long unerring lines, the sweep and amplitude of the great artist's stroke …

—Edith Wharton

4

mathematics : the angle assigned to a complex number when it is plotted in a complex plane using polar coordinates

called also argument

compare absolute value sense 2

5

: the height achieved on a jump by a snowboarder, skateboarder, skier, etc.

" … a lot of my strength in snowboarding is my amplitude … "

—Shaun White

Synonyms

• scope
• extent
• realm
• width
• range
• confines

Examples of amplitude in a Sentence

the amplitude of Thomas Jefferson's interests—government, architecture, agriculture, science, philosophy—is truly awesome

Recent Examples on the Web

The adjustable sweep amplitude, up to 25 degrees, gives the robot the ability to fine-tune its aerodynamic center relative to its body, improving control during liftoff. —Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 18 Sep. 2025

By the time the ripples from GW150914 arrived at Earth, the size of those ripples, which translates into a quantity known as the strain amplitude for a gravitational wave detector, was down to 10-21, or one part in one sextillion. —Ethan Siegel, Big Think, 17 Sep. 2025

Nonlinear acoustic phenomena tune the adults' facial thermal response to baby cries with the cry amplitude envelope. —Daniella Gray, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Sep. 2025

The copious observations and reflections that the speaker relates expand the movie—a mere seventy-one minutes long—into a work of novelistic amplitude. —Richard Brody, New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French, borrowed from Latin amplitūdin-, amplitūdō "size, extent, eminence, prestige," from amplus "more than adequate in size or extent, ample, eminent" + -i- -i- + -tūdin-, -tūdō -tude

First Known Use

1542, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing amplitude

• amplitude modulation

Rhymes for amplitude

• altitude
• aptitude
• attitude
• barbecued
• certitude
• desuetude
• devalued
• finitude
• fortitude
• gratitude
• interlude
• interviewed

Kids Definition

amplitude

noun

am·​pli·​tude ˈam-plə-ˌt(y)üd 

1

: the quality or state of being ample : fullness, abundance

2

: extent sense 1, range

3

a

: the extent of a back-and-forth movement (as of a pendulum) measured from the midpoint to an extreme

b

: one half of the up-and-down extent of the vibration of a wave (as of alternating current)

Medical Definition

amplitude

noun

am·​pli·​tude ˈam-plə-ˌt(y)üd 

: the extent or range of a quality, property, process, or phenomenon: as

a

: the extent of a vibratory movement (as of a pendulum) measured from the mean position to an extreme

b

: the maximum departure of the value of an alternating current or wave from the average value