high frequencyn.adj.
/ˌhʌɪ ˈfriːkw(ə)nsi/, U.S. /ˌhaɪ ˈfrikwənsi/ A. n.
1. A high rate of occurrence of any regularly repeated event, so that the interval between successive events is correspondingly small; (Physics, etc.) frequency (frequency n. 4b) having a relatively large number of cycles in a second; an instance of this; an electric current or voltage, an electromagnetic wave, or a sound wave so characterized; spec. (in radio and telecommunications) a frequency of an electromagnetic wave in the range 3–30 MHz (abbreviated HF), between medium frequency (MF) and very high frequency (VHF), corresponding to a wavelength of 10–100 metres .
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society > communication > telecommunication > [noun] > signal > frequency or band of frequencies
high frequency1842
low frequency1900
voice frequency1905
audio frequency1913
pulsatance1919
medium frequency1920
side frequency1920
intermediate frequency1924
bass1930
frequency1943
frequency spectrum1955
the world > matter > physics > mechanics > types of motion > [noun] > vibration or oscillation > frequency > high or low frequency
low frequency1839
high frequency1842
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electronics > electronic phenomena > [noun] > frequency > specific frequencies
high frequency1842
natural frequency1873
resonant frequency1897
resonance frequency1898
low frequency1928
modulation frequency1930
quench frequency1938
gyrofrequency1941
Nyquist frequency1963
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electricity > electric current > alternating current > [noun] > rate of recurrence > unit of > as measured in
high frequency1842
low frequency1900
1842 Prov. Med. Jrnl. 17 Sept. 472/1 When the pulse maintains a high frequency during the early stage of the disease, a lingering illness..may be looked for.
1872 J. D. Everett Deschanel's Elem. Treat. Nat. Philos. IV. lvii. 866 The vibrations of the æther are capable of producing other effects besides illumination... Vibrations of high frequency, or short period, are the most active chemically.
1891 Eng. Mechanic 53 469/2 A current of very high frequency and a very high potential.
1923 Nature 7 July 12/2 The vibrations are of frequency 200,000 per second, such as are commonly used in wireless telegraphy and telephony. Such high frequencies are neither seen nor heard, but can be detected by special methods.
1925 Proc. Physical Soc. 38 399 Very accurate measurements of the velocity of sound at very high frequencies.
1962 Newnes Conc. Encycl. Electr. Engin. 360/1 At high frequencies above 1,000 c/s there is an increasing tendency for the current to flow in a shallow surface layer of the conductor.
1988 ICL Techn. Jrnl. 6 125 Owing to their ability to operate at very high frequencies, coaxial cables can be used to transmit broadband signals.
1993 New Scientist 4 Sept. 22/2 The high frequencies of the violins.
2009 S. Blundell Superconductivity: Very Short Introd. ix. 136 Superconductors find their way into certain applications where high frequencies are needed, for example in antennas, filters, and mixers in microwave circuits.
2. A high rate of occurrence over a particular period of time or in a given sample.
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the world > time > frequency > [noun] > high frequency
high frequency1890
1890 Amer. Jrnl. Philol. 11 269 The high frequency of the art. inf. [= articular infinitive] in Polybius as compared with classical prose writers.
1935 J. S. Huxley & A. C. Haddon We Europeans ix. 267 Our picture of the human species will be like a contour-map, a region of high frequency for, say, round-headedness being separated from another similar peak by a ‘valley’ of low frequency.
1971 Sci. Amer. Oct. 21/1 A high frequency of kwashiorkor is now being found among the East Pakistan refugees in India.
2007 Daily Tel. 19 Mar. 23/5 As pilots, we are schooled to aviate, navigate, communciate—in that order of priority—and with a high frequency of switching from one mode to another.
B. adj. (originally and chiefly attributive)
1. Characterized by a high frequency (sense A. 1); of or relating to a high frequency; (of equipment) that operates at or deals with high frequencies.
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the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electronics > electronic phenomena > [adjective] > of specific frequency
low frequency1873
high frequency1891
radio frequency1915
1891 N. Tesla in Trans. Amer. Inst. Electr. Engineers 1890–91 8 275 (caption) High frequency alternator with drum armature.
1892 Times 5 May 10/1 The physiological action of the high frequency current is feeble.
1903 Daily Chron. 14 Nov. 5/2 High-frequency apparatus and superb laboratories are beside the point compared with air and light.
1914 R. Stanley Text-bk. Wireless Telegr. xii. 149 Do high and low frequency waves travel at the same speed?
1928 Nature 21 Apr. 623/1 High frequency sound waves of low intensity passed through these cells cause the protoplasm to rotate.
1955 F. E. Terman et al. Electronic & Radio Engin. (ed. 4) xxiv. 937 These requirements are usually more difficult to meet at the high-frequency end of the modulation range.
1960 R. W. Marks Dymaxion World Buckminster Fuller 23/1 The high-frequency hiss of the surf.
2006 D. Edgerton Shock of Old vii. 187 The cavity magnetron..generates high-power high-frequency radio waves.
2012 Adv. Chem. Physics 150 265 The local averaging time, tL, defines the separation of what is high frequency and what is low frequency compared to a local averaging frequency.
2. That occurs relatively often. Also: characterized by a high rate of occurrence over a particular period of time or in a given sample.
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1927 Elem. School Jrnl. 27 (front matter) Small, highly repetitive vocabulary of high frequency words.
1965 Eng. Stud. Feb. 75 It is hard to judge of the size of the corpus..but it seems to be adequate at least for high-frequency items.
1984 Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 81 7069/2 Co-transformation of unlinked nuclear markers is a high-frequency event in mammalian systems.
1998 D. Mueller-Dombois & F. R. Fosberg Vegetation Trop. Pacific Islands i. 31 The third high-frequency area is in the southern West Pacific.
2007 S. J. Wonderlich Predictors of Bullying Behaviors iii. 71 Some of the categories are very high frequency and others are low frequency.
Compounds
high-frequency alternator n. Electrical Engineering (now chiefly historical) any of several kinds of alternator designed to give an alternating current with a frequency greater than about 10 kHz.
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the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electricity > electrical engineering > dynamo > [noun] > dynamo giving alternating current
alternator1878
high-frequency alternator1891
1891high frequency alternator [see sense B. 1].
1935 J. B. Moore in K. Henney Radio Engin. Handbk. (ed. 2) 564 The high-frequency alternator is one of the most used types of transmitter for long-wave transoceanic code communication.
2006 T. C. Campbell Wireless Writing in Age of Marconi iv. 104 High-frequency alternators and the stronger signals they sent now meant that commanders could direct men to their deaths from a bunker, a lab, or a studio.
high-frequency amplification n. amplification of signals or sounds of high frequency; (Electronics) amplification at the carrier frequency in a receiver.
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society > communication > telecommunication > radio communications > [noun] > other methods or operations
quenchinga1300
high-frequency amplification1919
self-heterodyning1922
neutrodyning1924
preselection1924
1919 Wireless World Nov. 448 An eight valve amplifier, comprising five stages of high-frequency amplification, one stage of rectification, and two stages of audio-frequency amplification.
1930 Proc. IRE 18 1715 There are two stages of push-pull high-frequency amplification.
1995 M. H. Jones Pract. Introd. Electronic Circuits (ed. 3) vii. 164 This is the dual-gate MOSFET sometimes used in high-frequency amplification.
2001 H. Dillon Hearing Aids xii. 308 Excessive low-frequency amplification or insufficient high-frequency amplification may be described as muffled, unclear, boomy or dull.
high-frequency heating n. the heating of something by subjecting it to a high-frequency electric or magnetic field.Cf. dielectric heating n. at dielectric n. and adj. Additions, induction heating n. at induction n. Compounds 2.
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the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electricity > electrically induced magnetism > electromagnetic induction > [noun] > induction heating
induction heating1919
high-frequency heating1922
1922 Jrnl. Inst. Electr. Engineers 60 853/1 I did some research work on the high-frequency heating of filaments, and the results were very satisfactory.
1947 P. I. Smith Pract. Plastics iii. 42/2 The adoption of high-frequency heating as a pretreatment of mould-stuffs should enable very large..mouldings to be produced economically.
2010 F. Mohos Confectionary & Chocolate Engin. iii. 76 High-frequency heating is usually carried out at radio frequencies between 13.9 and 27 MHz and microwave heating at between 915 and 2450 MHz.
high-frequency induction furnace n. Metallurgy an induction furnace in which a high-frequency electric current is used.
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society > occupation and work > equipment > furnace or kiln > furnace > [noun] > types of furnace by method of operation
lamp-furnace1651
wind-furnace1651
reverbatory1656
blast furnace1706
revolver1879
run-out1881
flame-furnace1888
producer1890
resistance furnace1897
induction furnace1907
suction plant1909
high-frequency induction furnace1918
solar furnace1924
roller hearth furnace1927
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electricity > electrically induced magnetism > electromagnetic induction > [noun] > induction heating > apparatus for
high-frequency induction furnace1918
induction heater1919
1918 Jrnl. Inst. Metals 20 351 (heading) High-frequency induction furnace.
1946 V. N. Wood Metall. Materials i. 40 The high-frequency induction furnace is crucible-shaped. The charge is melted by the heat produced in it by eddy currents developed by a high-frequency current.
2000 T. Meguro & K. Komeya in Y. Kumashiro Electric Refractory Materials xxv. 680 In order to change the temperature gradient, two types of induction coil for the high-frequency induction furnace were employed.
high-frequency resistance n. (a) increased electrical resistance of a conductor at high frequencies (cf. skin effect n. at skin n. Compounds 5); (b) a resistance for use at high frequencies or that is effective at high frequencies.
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the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electricity > resistance > [noun]
resistance1746
R1842
water resistance1859
resistivity1885
skin effect1890
high-frequency resistance1892
leak1896
negative resistance1896
photoresistance1925
piezoresistance1954
piezoresistivity1958
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electronics > electronic devices or components > [noun] > resistor
high-frequency resistance1892
decade1911
voltage divider1930
bleeder resistance or resistor1935
resistor1947
1892 O. Heaviside Electr. Papers II. 193 The high-frequency resistance is independent of the steady resistance, and must be much greater than it.
1926 S. O. Pearson Dict. Wireless Techn. Terms 42 This is done to reduce the high-frequency resistance of the aerial.
1951 A. Hund High-frequency Measurem. (ed. 2) ii. 96 Any amplitude differences are balanced out by properly chosen high-frequency resistances.
2010 D. S. Hussey & D. L. Jacobson in U. Pasaogullari & Chao-Yang Wang Modeling & Diagnostics Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cells iv. 197 This led to a lower high-frequency resistance, as well as better cell performance for counter-flow.
high-frequency treatment n. treatment using high-frequency electric currents, esp. for medicinal or cosmetic purposes; an instance of this.
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the world > health and disease > healing > medical treatment > treatment by electricity > [noun] > other electrical treatments
galvanism1797
Franklinization18..
electropathy1842
electrogenesis1847
high-frequency treatment1902
diathermy1910
society > occupation and work > industry > working with specific materials > working with metal > [noun] > hardening, tempering, or annealing > heating followed by quenching
high-frequency treatment1902
solution treatment1931
quench hardening1934
solution heat treatment1935
induction hardening1941
solutionizing1977
1902 Jrnl. Physical Therapeutics 3 103 I have myself noted the action of high frequency treatment in reducing the stoutness of one patient, and many instances of the kind have been recorded.
1921 S. Tousey Med. Electr., Röntgen Rays & Radium (ed. 3) 579 In one case of diabetes there was marked acetonuria, which completely disappeared during a course of high-frequency treatments.
1992 W. G. Jaffé & D. S. Seidl in A. T. Tu Food Poisoning xi. 270 Heintze (1950) found dry heating or high frequency treatment ineffective for the cooking of beans.
2010 Scunthorpe Evening Tel. (Nexis) Aug. 18 High frequency treatments help dry out spots and have an antibacterial effect.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2014; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
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n.adj.1842