cymatics

C3Y4M3A1T1I1C3S1
/saɪˈmæ.tɪks/

noun

The study of visible effects of sound and vibration.

OriginLatin cȳmat(is) ← Ancient Greek κῡ́μᾰτος →
Scrabble 17
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Meanings

nouncymatics (uncountable)
  1. uncountablenatural sciencesThe study of visible effects of sound and vibration.

    A 25-minute color film and 50 black-and-white single frames were drawn from Dr. Hans Jenny’s experiments with cymatics — the structure and dynamics of waves and vibrations.

    1966, Photographic Applications in Science and Technology, I-II, page 83

Origin

  1. Ancient Greekκῡ́μᾰτος“wave, billow, swell, sprout, fetus”
  2. Latincȳmat(is)“sprout, swelling, hollow sphere”
  3. Englishcymatics

Coined by Hans Jenny from Latin cȳmat(is) (“sprout, swelling, hollow sphere”) + -ics, stem of cȳma, from Ancient Greek κῡ́μᾰτος (kū́mătos, “wave, billow, swell, sprout, fetus”), genitive of κῦμα (kûma).

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Cite this entry
APA

cymatics. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cymatics

MLA

“cymatics.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cymatics. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cymatics,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cymatics.

Source: cymatics on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.