Words / B2

lowd-SPEEK-uh/ˌlaʊdˈspiːkə/

A loudspeaker is equipment that makes sound louder for a crowd: the hall loudspeaker; loudspeaker announcement. Speaker can mean the person or the kit; tannoy is a brand used generically in the UK. The fire drill used the loudspeaker. Mix-up: speaker (person who talks). Do not call a pair of earbuds a loudspeaker in a physics paper.

Meaning

A piece of equipment that makes sound louder so a crowd can hear.

Examples

• “The fire drill used the loudspeaker, not a staff WhatsApp ping.”
• “Label the loudspeaker cone on the physics diagram, which is the device sense.”

Good to know

a loudspeaker announcement / system. Person: speaker. UK informal: tannoy. Trap: headphones. Safety drills and physics. Crowd amplification, not a person.

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