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public-address system
noun
variants
or public address system
: an apparatus including a microphone and loudspeakers used for broadcasting (as to an audience in an auditorium)
called also PA, PA system
Examples of public-address system in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The latest episode of Evil includes an extended scene, set on on a plane going through turbulence, which features a) a demonic relic, b) a ghost pilot, c) disturbingly otherworldly transmissions through the aircraft’s public-address system.
—Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 20 June 2024
The company’s greatest hits spotlighted Tiger Woods’s marital meltdown and the JetBlue flight attendant who quit his job by shouting obscenities over a plane’s public-address system, grabbing a beer from the galley, and sliding down the plane’s emergency chute.
—IEEE Spectrum, 31 Jan. 2012
These needed to be kept at a distance from exploding pyrotechnics and angled away from the blare of the stadium’s public-address system.
—Jody Rosen, New York Times, 2 Dec. 2023
In train stations, and subway stations, a voice over the public-address system makes an announcement, routinely.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 13 Jan. 2023
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Word History
First Known Use
1917, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of public-address system was
in 1917
Dictionary Entries Near public-address system
Cite this Entry
“Public-address system.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/public-address%20system. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
Kids Definition
public-address system
noun
: a set of equipment including microphone and loudspeakers used for broadcasting to a large audience in an auditorium or out of doors
More from Merriam-Webster on public-address system
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about public-address system
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