radio

Pluralradios (some meanings)

Formsradios, radioing, radioed

1. 1
   wireless signalsnoununcountable

   The technology for sending sound or other signals by modulating electromagnetic waves.

   Radio made it possible to reach ships far out at sea.

   The invention of radio changed how news traveled across continents.

   UsageSend a message by radio, without an article, as by phone. For broadcasts, say on the radio.

2. 2
   nouncountable

   A device that receives broadcast radio signals and plays them as sound. It is often combined with other audio functions, such as a CD player in a car.

   He adjusted the antenna so the radio could pick up distant stations.

   During the blackout, we listened to the news on a battery-powered radio.

   UsageUsually on the radio and listen to the radio, with the, even when no particular set is meant.

   Similarreceiver

3. 3
   transmitternouncountable

   A device used to send out signals over radio waves to distant receivers.

   The team installed a powerful radio on the hilltop to reach distant stations.

   Field operators used a portable radio to transmit their coordinates.

   Similartransmitter, transceiver

   Oppositereceiver

4. 4
   online streamingnoununcountable

   The continuous streaming of sound over the Internet, in the manner of traditional radio.

   Online radio lets listeners tune into stations from anywhere in the world.

   The station moved entirely to internet radio after closing its broadcast tower.

   Note

   Broadcasting's vocabulary carried over to the Internet. What makes a stream radio is that it runs continuously, the way a station does, rather than letting the listener pick each item. The qualifier names the delivery, while the experience stays that of tuning in. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

   • The broadcasting term radio extends to sound broadcast over the Internet. en.wiktionary.org
   • Internet radio presents a continuous audio stream resembling traditional broadcasting, distinguished from selecting individual items on demand. en.wikipedia.org
5. 5
   noununcountable

   The broadcasting of programs over the airwaves, viewed as a means of communication or as an industry.

   Before television arrived, radio was where families gathered for news and comedy.

   Advertisers who once relied on radio have moved much of their spending online.

   Note

   Here radio takes no article and no plural, the way theater or publishing does as a field of work. The prepositions sort the meanings: you work in radio, the industry, but you hear a song on the radio, and you buy the receiving set as a radio. Radio and television often pair as rival media.

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