Ask Difference

Sound vs. Audio — What's the Difference?

By Urooj Arif & Fiza Rafique — Updated on March 20, 2024
Sound is a vibration that travels through a medium like air or water, perceived by the ear, while audio refers specifically to sounds that are recorded, transmitted, or reproduced.
Sound vs. Audio — What's the Difference?

Difference Between Sound and Audio

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Key Differences

Sound is a physical phenomenon that occurs when objects vibrate, creating pressure waves in a medium such as air, water, or solids. These waves can be detected by the ear, allowing us to hear. Whereas, audio specifically refers to sound that has been captured, processed, or reproduced through electronic means. This includes music, speech, and other sounds for communication and entertainment purposes.
The perception of sound is subjective and can vary greatly among different listeners. It depends on the physical properties of the sound waves, including frequency, amplitude, and phase. On the other hand, audio is often manipulated to enhance quality or to suit specific needs, through techniques like equalization, compression, and spatialization, making it a more controlled form of sound.
Sound is produced by a variety of sources in the natural and man-made world, from the rustling of leaves to the roar of an engine. Audio, however, is typically generated or recorded through electronic devices, such as microphones and synthesizers, highlighting its technological aspect.
While sound can exist without human intervention, audio requires some form of electronic manipulation or transmission. This distinction emphasizes audio's role in modern communication and entertainment, where it is shared and experienced through devices like speakers and headphones.
The study of sound, acoustics, encompasses a broad range of disciplines, including physics, engineering, and music. Audio engineering, on the other hand, focuses more narrowly on recording, manipulating, and reproducing sound, particularly for media consumption, showing the professional specialization surrounding audio.
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Comparison Chart

Definition

Physical vibrations perceived by the ear.
Sound that is recorded, transmitted, or reproduced.

Medium

Travels through air, water, or solids.
Often digital or analog signals in electronic devices.

Production

Natural or man-made sources.
Requires electronic equipment for creation or reproduction.

Manipulation

Can be affected by environment but not easily altered.
Can be edited, enhanced, or otherwise manipulated electronically.

Study

Acoustics covers its physics and perception.
Audio engineering focuses on its technological aspects.

Compare with Definitions

Sound

A specific noise or tone.
The sound of the rain on the roof was soothing.

Audio

The field of technology related to the recording.manipulation.and reproduction of sound.
He works in audio production.

Sound

To make noise.
The alarm clock sounded at 6 AM.

Audio

The electronic reproduction of sound.
High-quality audio equipment can be expensive.

Sound

A vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave.
The sound of the bell could be heard from miles away.

Audio

An audible recording or broadcast.
She listened to the audio book during her commute.

Sound

Auditory sensation experienced when waves reach the ear.
The sound of her laughter filled the room.

Audio

Equipment and systems for recording and reproducing sound.
The studio was filled with audio gear.

Sound

The area within which something can be heard.
They were out of sound of our voices.

Audio

The part of a film or video recording that contains the sound.
The audio was out of sync with the video.

Sound

In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the reception of such waves and their perception by the brain.

Audio

Of or relating to recorded, transmitted, or reproduced sound.

Sound

Vibrations transmitted through an elastic solid or a liquid or gas, with frequencies in the approximate range of 20 to 20,000 hertz, capable of being detected by human organs of hearing.

Audio

Of or relating to humanly audible sound.

Sound

Transmitted vibrations of any frequency.

Audio

Recorded or reproduced sound.

Sound

The sensation stimulated in the organs of hearing by such vibrations in the air or other medium.

Audio

Audible sound.

Sound

Such sensations considered as a group.

Audio

A sound signal or recording.

Sound

A distinctive noise
A hollow sound.

Audio

The part of television or movie equipment that has to do with sound.

Sound

The distance over which something can be heard
Within sound of my voice.

Audio

Focused on audible sound, as opposed to sight.

Sound

An articulation made by the vocal apparatus
A vowel sound.

Audio

A sound, or a sound signal

Sound

The distinctive character of such an articulation
The words bear and bare have the same sound.

Audio

The part of a transmitted signal which conveys the sound of the event represented by the signal, such as that of a television program.

Sound

A mental impression; an implication
Didn't like the sound of the invitation.

Audio

An audible acoustic wave frequency.

Sound

Auditory material that is recorded, as for a movie.

Audio

The sound elements of television.

Sound

Meaningless noise.

Audio

The audible part of a transmitted signal;
They always raise the audio for commercials

Sound

(Music) A distinctive style, as of an orchestra or singer.

Audio

An audible acoustic wave frequency

Sound

(Archaic) Rumor; report.

Audio

The sound elements of television

Sound

A long, relatively wide body of water, larger than a strait or a channel, connecting larger bodies of water.

Sound

A long, wide ocean inlet.

Sound

(Archaic) The swim bladder of a fish.

Sound

An instrument used to examine or explore body cavities, as for foreign bodies or other abnormalities, or to dilate strictures in them.

Sound

To make or give forth a sound
The siren sounded.

Sound

To be given forth as a sound
The fanfare sounded.

Sound

To present a particular impression
That argument sounds reasonable.

Sound

To cause to give forth or produce a sound
Sounded the gong.

Sound

To summon, announce, or signal by a sound
Sound a warning.

Sound

(Linguistics) To articulate; pronounce
Sound a vowel.

Sound

To make known; celebrate
"Nations unborn your mighty names shall sound" (Alexander Pope).

Sound

To examine (a body organ or part) by causing to emit sound; auscultate.

Sound

To measure the depth of (water), especially by means of a weighted line; fathom.

Sound

To try to learn the attitudes or opinions of
Sounded out her feelings.

Sound

To probe (a body cavity) with a sound.

Sound

To measure depth.

Sound

To dive swiftly downward. Used of a marine mammal or a fish.

Sound

To look into a possibility; investigate.

Sound

Free from defect, decay, or damage; in good condition
Is the bridge sound?.

Sound

Free from disease or injury.

Sound

Marked by or showing common sense and good judgment; levelheaded
A sound approach to the problem.

Sound

Based on valid reasoning; having no logical flaws
A sound conclusion.
Sound reasoning.

Sound

(Logic) Of or relating to an argument in which all the premises are true and the conclusion follows from the premises.

Sound

Secure or stable
A partnership that started on a sound footing.

Sound

Financially secure or safe
A sound economy.

Sound

Thorough; complete
Gave their rivals a sound thrashing.

Sound

Deep and unbroken; undisturbed
A sound sleep.

Sound

Compatible with an accepted point of view; orthodox
Sound doctrine.

Sound

Thoroughly; deeply
Sound asleep.

Sound

Healthy.
He was safe and sound.
In horse management a sound horse is one with no health problems that might affect its suitability for its intended work.

Sound

Complete, solid, or secure.
Fred assured me the floorboards were sound.

Sound

Having the property of soundness.

Sound

Good; acceptable; decent.
How are you? —I'm sound.
That's a sound track you're playing.
See that man over there? He's sound. You should get to know him.

Sound

(of sleep) Quiet and deep.
Sound asleep means sleeping peacefully, and often deeply.
Her sleep was sound.

Sound

Heavy; laid on with force.
A sound beating

Sound

Founded in law; legal; valid; not defective.
A sound title to land

Sound

Soundly.

Sound

Yes; used to show agreement or understanding, generally without much enthusiasm.
I found my jacket. — Sound.

Sound

A sensation perceived by the ear caused by the vibration of air or some other medium.
He turned when he heard the sound of footsteps behind him.
Nobody made a sound.

Sound

A vibration capable of causing such sensations.

Sound

(music) A distinctive style and sonority of a particular musician, orchestra, &.

Sound

Noise without meaning; empty noise.

Sound

, distance within which a certain noise may be heard.
Stay within the sound of my voice.

Sound

(phonetics) A segment as a part of spoken language, the smallest unit of spoken language, a speech sound.

Sound

A long narrow inlet, or a strait between the mainland and an island; also, a strait connecting two seas, or connecting a sea or lake with the ocean.
Puget Sound; Owen Sound; Long Island Sound

Sound

The air bladder of a fish.
Cod sounds are an esteemed article of food.

Sound

A long, thin probe for sounding or dilating body cavities or canals such as the urethra; a sonde.

Sound

(intransitive) To produce a sound.
When the horn sounds, take cover.

Sound

(copulative) To convey an impression by one's sound.
He sounded good when we last spoke.
That story sounds like a pack of lies!

Sound

(intransitive) To be conveyed in sound; to be spread or published; to convey intelligence by sound.

Sound

To resound.

Sound

To arise or to be recognizable as arising in or from a particular area of law, or as likely to result in a particular kind of legal remedy.
In my opinion this claim sounds in damages rather than in an injunction.

Sound

(transitive) To cause to produce a sound.
Sound the alarm!
He sounds the instrument.

Sound

To pronounce.
The "e" in "house" isn't sounded.

Sound

(intransitive) Dive downwards, used of a whale.
The whale sounded and eight hundred feet of heavy line streaked out of the line tub before he ended his dive.

Sound

To ascertain, or try to ascertain, the thoughts, motives, and purposes of (a person); to examine; to try; to test; to probe.
When I sounded him, he appeared to favor the proposed deal.

Sound

Test; ascertain the depth of water with a sounding line or other device.
Mariners on sailing ships would sound the depth of the water with a weighted rope.

Sound

(medicine) To examine with the instrument called a sound or sonde, or by auscultation or percussion.
To sound a patient, or the bladder or urethra

Sound

The air bladder of a fish; as, cod sounds are an esteemed article of food.

Sound

A cuttlefish.

Sound

A narrow passage of water, or a strait between the mainland and an island; also, a strait connecting two seas, or connecting a sea or lake with the ocean; as, the Sound between the Baltic and the german Ocean; Long Island Sound.
The Sound of Denmark, where ships pay toll.

Sound

Any elongated instrument or probe, usually metallic, by which cavities of the body are sounded or explored, especially the bladder for stone, or the urethra for a stricture.

Sound

The peceived object occasioned by the impulse or vibration of a material substance affecting the ear; a sensation or perception of the mind received through the ear, and produced by the impulse or vibration of the air or other medium with which the ear is in contact; the effect of an impression made on the organs of hearing by an impulse or vibration of the air caused by a collision of bodies, or by other means; noise; report; as, the sound of a drum; the sound of the human voice; a horrid sound; a charming sound; a sharp, high, or shrill sound.
The warlike soundOf trumpets loud and clarions.

Sound

The occasion of sound; the impulse or vibration which would occasion sound to a percipient if present with unimpaired; hence, the theory of vibrations in elastic media such cause sound; as, a treatise on sound.

Sound

Noise without signification; empty noise; noise and nothing else.
Sense and not sound . . . must be the principle.

Sound

Whole; unbroken; unharmed; free from flaw, defect, or decay; perfect of the kind; as, sound timber; sound fruit; a sound tooth; a sound ship.

Sound

Healthy; not diseased; not being in a morbid state; - said of body or mind; as, a sound body; a sound constitution; a sound understanding.

Sound

Firm; strong; safe.
The brasswork here, how rich it is in beams,And how, besides, it makes the whole house sound.

Sound

Free from error; correct; right; honest; true; faithful; orthodox; - said of persons; as, a sound lawyer; a sound thinker.
Do not I know you a favorerOf this new seat? Ye are nor sound.

Sound

Founded in truth or right; supported by justice; not to be overthrown on refuted; not fallacious; as, sound argument or reasoning; a sound objection; sound doctrine; sound principles.
Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me.

Sound

Heavy; laid on with force; as, a sound beating.

Sound

Undisturbed; deep; profound; as, sound sleep.

Sound

Founded in law; legal; valid; not defective; as, a sound title to land.

Sound

Soundly.
So sound he slept that naught might him awake.

Sound

To measure the depth of; to fathom; especially, to ascertain the depth of by means of a line and plummet.

Sound

To explore, as the bladder or urethra, with a sound; to examine with a sound; also, to examine by auscultation or percussion; as, to sound a patient.

Sound

To ascertain the depth of water with a sounding line or other device.
I sound as a shipman soundeth in the sea with his plummet to know the depth of sea.

Sound

To make a noise; to utter a voice; to make an impulse of the air that shall strike the organs of hearing with a perceptible effect.
How silver-sweet sound lovers' tongues!

Sound

To be conveyed in sound; to be spread or published; to convey intelligence by sound.
From you sounded out the word of the Lord.

Sound

To make or convey a certain impression, or to have a certain import, when heard; hence, to seem; to appear; as, this reproof sounds harsh; the story sounds like an invention.
Good sir, why do you start, and seem to fearThings that do sound so fair?
Soun[d]ing in moral virtue was his speech.

Sound

To cause to make a noise; to play on; as, to sound a trumpet or a horn; to sound an alarm.
A bagpipe well could he play and soun[d].

Sound

To cause to exit as a sound; as, to sound a note with the voice, or on an instrument.

Sound

To order, direct, indicate, or proclain by a sound, or sounds; to give a signal for by a certain sound; as, to sound a retreat; to sound a parley.
The clock sounded the hour of noon.

Sound

To celebrate or honor by sounds; to cause to be reported; to publish or proclaim; as, to sound the praises of fame of a great man or a great exploit.

Sound

To examine the condition of (anything) by causing the same to emit sounds and noting their character; as, to sound a piece of timber; to sound a vase; to sound the lungs of a patient.

Sound

To signify; to import; to denote.
Soun[d]ing alway the increase of his winning.

Sound

The particular auditory effect produced by a given cause;
The sound of rain on the roof
The beautiful sound of music

Sound

The subjective sensation of hearing something;
He strained to hear the faint sounds

Sound

Mechanical vibrations transmitted by an elastic medium;
Falling trees make a sound in the forest even when no one is there to hear them

Sound

The sudden occurrence of an audible event;
The sound awakened them

Sound

The audible part of a transmitted signal;
They always raise the audio for commercials

Sound

(phonetics) an individual sound unit of speech without concern as to whether or not it is a phoneme of some language

Sound

A narrow channel of the sea joining two larger bodies of water

Sound

A large ocean inlet or deep bay;
The main body of the sound ran parallel to the coast

Sound

Appear in a certain way;
This sounds interesting

Sound

Make a certain noise or sound;
She went `Mmmmm'
The gun went `bang'

Sound

Give off a certain sound or sounds;
This record sounds scratchy

Sound

Announce by means of a sound;
Sound the alarm

Sound

Utter with vibrating vocal chords

Sound

Cause to sound;
Sound the bell
Sound a certain note

Sound

Measure the depth of (a body of water) with a sounding line

Sound

Financially secure and safe;
Sound investments
A sound economy

Sound

Exercising or showing good judgment;
Healthy scepticism
A healthy fear of rattlesnakes
The healthy attitude of French laws
Healthy relations between labor and management
An intelligent solution
A sound approach to the problem
Sound advice
No sound explanation for his decision

Sound

In good condition; free from defect or damage or decay;
A sound timber
The wall is sound
A sound foundation

Sound

In excellent physical condition;
Good teeth
I still have one good leg
A sound mind in a sound body

Sound

Reflects weight of sound argument or evidence;
A sound argument

Sound

Having legal efficacy or force;
A sound title to the property

Sound

Free from moral defect;
A man of sound character

Sound

(of sleep) deep and complete;
A heavy sleep
Fell into a profound sleep
A sound sleeper
Deep wakeless sleep

Sound

Thorough;
A sound thrashing

Sound

Deeply or completely;
Slept soundly through the storm
Is sound asleep

Common Curiosities

What is audio?

Audio refers to sound, especially when recorded, transmitted, or reproduced by electronic devices.

How is audio created?

Audio is created by converting sound vibrations into electrical signals, which can be stored, transmitted, or reproduced.

Can sound exist without audio?

Yes, sound exists naturally and can occur without any electronic intervention, whereas audio specifically involves electronic manipulation.

How does sound travel?

Sound travels in waves through mediums like air, water, or solids.

Can audio be manipulated?

Yes, audio can be extensively manipulated using software and hardware for effects, clarity, and other modifications.

Is all sound considered audio?

Not all sound is considered audio; audio is specifically sound that is electronically captured, transmitted, or reproduced.

What is the role of audio in media?

Audio plays a critical role in media, providing the sound aspect of films, music, broadcasts, and games.

What equipment is used to record audio?

Microphones, digital recorders, and audio interfaces are commonly used to record audio.

What is sound?

Sound is a vibration that travels through a medium such as air or water and can be heard when it reaches a person's or animal's ear.

Can humans hear all sounds?

Humans can hear sounds in the frequency range of about 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz, but cannot hear ultrasonic or infrasonic frequencies outside this range.

How do environmental factors affect sound?

Environmental factors like temperature, humidity, and obstacles can affect the speed, direction, and quality of sound waves.

What is audio engineering?

Audio engineering is a field of study and work focused on recording, mixing, manipulating, and reproducing sound.

What is the importance of audio quality?

High audio quality improves the clarity, enjoyment, and realism of recorded sound, impacting listener experiences in music, film, and broadcasting.

What distinguishes digital audio from analog audio?

Digital audio encodes sound as digital signals for storage and playback, whereas analog audio uses continuous signals that mimic the original sound waves.

How do sound waves differ from radio waves?

Sound waves are mechanical pressure waves in mediums like air, whereas radio waves are electromagnetic and can travel through a vacuum.

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Author Spotlight

Written by
Urooj Arif
Urooj is a skilled content writer at Ask Difference, known for her exceptional ability to simplify complex topics into engaging and informative content. With a passion for research and a flair for clear, concise writing, she consistently delivers articles that resonate with our diverse audience.
Co-written by
Fiza Rafique
Fiza Rafique is a skilled content writer at AskDifference.com, where she meticulously refines and enhances written pieces. Drawing from her vast editorial expertise, Fiza ensures clarity, accuracy, and precision in every article. Passionate about language, she continually seeks to elevate the quality of content for readers worldwide.

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