oscillation

Everyday

1. A regular movement back and forth, like a pendulum swing. tree →
2. (science) One full swing or vibration, from one side to the other and back. tree →
3. A change back and forth between two states, feelings or opinions. tree →

In the lessons

A science word: we count oscillations of a pendulum to measure its period (the time for one full oscillation). Sound and light are oscillations (vibrations and waves). In maths problems: if a pendulum makes 30 oscillations in 60 seconds, one oscillation takes 60 ÷ 30 = 2 seconds.

Examples

• We counted ten oscillations of the pendulum. tree →
• One oscillation means swinging there and back again. tree →
• Sound is made by the oscillation of air particles. tree →
• A longer pendulum has slower oscillations. tree →
• There was an oscillation in her mood all day. tree →
• The bridge's oscillation in the wind worried engineers. tree →

Note

Countable when you count swings; uncountable for the general idea. In maths and science: frequency = number of oscillations per second (measured in hertz, Hz). Spelling: os-cil-la-tion.