| A | B |
|---|
| wave | a repeating disturbance or movement that transfers energy through matter or space |
| medium | matter in which a wave travels |
| transverse wave | wave for which the matter in the medium moves back and forth at right angles to the direction the wave travels; has crests and troughs |
| compressional wave | a wave for which the matter in the medium moves back and forth along the direction that the wave travels |
| crests | the highest points on a transverse wave |
| troughs | the lowest points on a transverse wave |
| rarefaction | the least dense regions of a compressional wave |
| wavelength | distance between one point on a wave and the nearest point point just like it |
| frequency | the number of wavelengths that pass a fixed point each second; expressed in hertz (Hz) |
| period | the amount of time it takes one wavelength to pass a fixed point; expressed in seconds |
| amplitude | a measure of the energy carried by a wave |
| refraction | the bending of a wave as it changes speed in moving from one medium to another |
| diffraction | the bending of waves around an obstacle; can also occur when waves pass through a narrow opening |
| interference | occurs when two or more waves overlap and combine to form a new wave |
| standing wave | a wave pattern that forms when waves of equal wavelength and amplitude, but traveling in opposite directions, continuously interfere with each other; has points called nodes that do not move |
| resonance | the process by which an object is made to vibrate by absorbing energy at its natural frequencies |
