airwaves

American  

[air-weyvz] / ˈɛərˌweɪvz /

plural noun

1. the media of radio and television broadcasting.

   The airwaves were filled with news flashes about the crisis.

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airwaves British  

/ ˈɛəˌweɪvz /

plural noun

1. informal radio waves used in radio and television broadcasting

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Etymology

Origin of airwaves

1895–1900, for earlier sense; air ¹ + waves (plural of wave )

Example Sentences

From the London bombings in 2005 to the aftermath of the 2017 Manchester Arena attack and the Covid pandemic lockdown of 2020, Mills was on the airwaves taking listeners through difficult events.

From BBC • Mar. 30, 2026

There was a rich businessman whose free-spending ad blitz made him inescapable on the airwaves.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 25, 2026

The billionaire funded Stratton’s super PAC and made himself the face of many of her ads, allowing her to catch up against Krishnamoorthi after he’d had the airwaves to himself for months.

From Slate • Mar. 21, 2026

But the security forces are working to make their presence felt on the ground and over the airwaves.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026

On the concert stage or over the airwaves, the transcendent quality of her voice touched her audiences deeply.

From "The Voice That Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights" by Russell Freedman