decibel
DESS-uh-bel · noun
English
Origin
Decibel is built from deci-, meaning one tenth, plus bel, a unit of measurement. Put together, the word literally names a tenth of a bel.
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Journey
Decibel has simply denoted this tenth-of-a-bel measurement since it was formed.
Related words
It shares its second half with the unit bel itself, making bel and decibel direct relatives, one simply a fraction of the other.