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primary wave

American  

noun

  1. Seismology. P wave.

primary wave Scientific  

  1. A type of seismic body wave in which rock particles vibrate parallel to the direction of wave travel. Primary waves are alternatingly compressional and extensional, and cause the rocks they pass through to change in volume. These waves are the fastest traveling seismic waves and can travel through solids, liquids, and gases.

  2. Also called P wave

  3. See Note at earthquake

Etymology

Origin of primary wave

First recorded in 1915–20

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.