What does wavelength mean?
Word: Wavelength
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Wavelength means the distance between one wave of energy, such as light or sound, and the next.
How do you spell wavelength?
Syllables: wave - length
Tricky part: The g before the th is quiet in speech, so it often gets lost or ends up in the wrong place.
Watch out for: wavelenth, wavelenght
Memory tip: Long things have length: the g you can hear in long stays in the word that measures it.
Idioms and Phrases
- on the same wavelength: thinking in a similar way and understanding each other easily. Example: "Hannah and Kenji finish each other's sentences; they are on the same wavelength."
Wavelength in a sentence
Example 1: Red light has a longer wavelength than blue light.
Example 2: Each radio station broadcasts on its own wavelength.
Example 3: In physics class we worked out the wavelength of a wave on a long spring.
Fun Fact
Sizes vary hugely. The wavelength of visible light is less than a thousandth of a millimetre, while an FM radio wave stretches about three metres.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Makeup
Only one of these compound words is spelt correctly. Choose it:
a) wavelength
b) cupbord
c) earthquak
d) thunderstrom
Show answer
a) wavelength. Thunderstorm has storm at the end, cupboard has board, and earthquake needs its final e.
Word Cookie
Insert the correct pair of letters to form a word:
wav_l_ngth
a) e, e
b) i, e
c) a, e
d) e, a
Show answer
a) e, e. The first gap takes the silent letter that makes the a long, and the second has the vowel of bed.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
Our science club built a model to show how wavellength changes from one colour to another.
a) model
b) colour
c) science
d) wavellength
Show answer
d) wavellength. One l is all the word needs.
Mingle-Mangle
Form a meaningful word from the jumbled letters:
gelwhavnet
a) wavelength
b) watertight
c) wallflower
d) weightless
Show answer
a) wavelength. The jumble holds a v, and the other three words have none.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. If the wavelength of a sound gets shorter while its speed stays the same, the sound will be ____.
a) much softer
b) higher in pitch
c) much louder
d) lower in pitch
Show answer
b) higher in pitch
2. To find a wavelength in a water tank, a pupil measures from ____.
a) the first wave to the final wave
b) one crest to the next crest
c) the surface to the tank floor
d) one wall to the other wall
Show answer
b) one crest to the next crest
