cymatograph

C3Y4M3A1T1O1G2R1A1P3H4
UK/saɪˈmætəʊɡɹɑːf/UK/saɪˈmætəʊɡɹæf/

noun

An instrument for compounding the resultant of two parallel, simple, harmonic waves.

OriginLatin cȳmat(is) ← Ancient Greek κῡ́μᾰτος →
Scrabble 24
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Meanings

nouncymatograph (plural cymatographs)

plural cymatographs

  1. obsoleterareAn instrument for compounding the resultant of two parallel, simple, harmonic waves.

    Prof. S. P. Thompson…had also lent for exhibition…a “cymatograph” (an instrument for compounding the resultant of two parallel, simple, harmonic waves).

    1885, Nature, XXXII, page 279

Origin

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

From Latin cȳmat(is) (“sprout, swelling, hollow sphere”) + -o- + -graph, stem of cȳma, from Ancient Greek κῡ́μᾰτος (kū́mătos, “wave, billow, swell, sprout, fetus”), genitive of κῦμα (kûma). Compare cymograph.

More words from Latin, Ancient Greek

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Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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