radio frequency

noun

: any of the electromagnetic wave frequencies that lie in the range extending from below 3 kilohertz to about 300 gigahertz and that include the frequencies used for communications signals (as for radio and television broadcasting and cell-phone and satellite transmissions) or radar signals

Examples of radio frequency in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The simplest way is visually, and another method involves scanning radio frequencies, the communications sent between a pilot and the drone itself. —Cyrus Farivar, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024

Local police and Trump’s protective detail had not been able to communicate on the same radio frequency when local officers spotted the gunman on a nearby roof at the Butler rally. —Ashley Oliver, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 5 Dec. 2024

Your phone won’t understand these radio frequencies, so these probes usually rely on a middleman: the base station. —Sal Vaglica, WIRED, 11 Dec. 2024

Topline The northern lights may be visible along a stretch of northern states Tuesday night, and a recent solar flare could heavily disrupt radio frequencies this week, according to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecast. —Ty Roush, Forbes, 10 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1915, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

radio frequency

noun

: any of the electromagnetic wave frequencies between about 3 kilohertz and 300 gigahertz that are used especially in radio and television transmission and in radar

Medical Definition

radio frequency

noun

: any of the electromagnetic wave frequencies that lie in a range extending from below 3 kilohertz to about 300 gigahertz and that include the frequencies used for communications signals (as for radio and television broadcasting and cell-phone transmissions) or radar signals

—often hyphenated when used before another noun

radio-frequency waves