alleryStart learning →Which quantity is used to describe the loudness of sounds?
ASound wavelength
BSound intensity
CSound refraction
DSound diffraction
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. Sound intensity
1. Loudness needs a measurable quantity behind it, not just a description.
2. The useful quantity for describing loudness is sound intensity.
3. It follows from how energetically the source of the sound is vibrating.
4. Wavelength and frequency describe the pitch of the note instead.
_Source: OpenStax Physics (high school, CC BY 4.0), Ch 14 "Sound", section Amplitude, Loudness and Energy of a Sound Wave_
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