microphone

Where does the word "microphone" come from? It comes from Greek mikros, and was adopted directly into English (1870s).

Microphone’s story begins in Greek: mikros meant “small.” Small, combined with phone (sound) for amplifying small sounds. It reached English by 1870s as microphone. Coined by scientists developing devices to amplify faint sounds. Today, microphone means a device that converts sound waves into an electrical signal.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient mikros "small", small, combined with phone (sound) for amplifying small sounds.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1870s microphone "a device that converts sound into an electrical signal", coined by scientists developing devices to amplify faint sounds.