YOUR VOCABULARY, ONE WORD AT A TIME

attenuate

Verb

IPA /əˈtenjueɪt/

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Meaning in plain English

To reduce the strength or effect of something.

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Pronunciation

attenuate/əˈtenjueɪt/

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A strong sound passes through a room
Thick material absorbs some of its energy
The sound becomes weaker

To attenuate a sound or signal is to reduce its strength.

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The thick curtains attenuated the noise from the street.
The engineers tested a material designed to attenuate the signal.

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The engineers tested a material designed to ________ the signal.

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attenuate — To reduce the strength or effect of something.

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To reduce the strength or effect of something.

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Word origin

From Latin attenuare, meaning make thin, related to tenuis, meaning thin.

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Attenuate can describe a reduction in a signal, a sound or an effect.

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