What does audiovisual mean?
Audiovisual describes anything that engages both hearing and sight simultaneously — most commonly materials, equipment, or methods of teaching and presentation that combine recorded sound with visual imagery. It functions chiefly as an adjective, as in an 'audiovisual presentation' or 'audiovisual equipment', but it also serves as a noun, usually in the plural, to refer collectively to such materials. The word emerged in the twentieth century alongside film strips, slide projectors, and educational broadcasting, when educators needed a convenient term for resources that spoke and showed at once. Today it remains standard vocabulary in education, publishing, conference management, and library science, where it is often abbreviated simply as AV. Its Latin roots — audire, 'to hear', and videre, 'to see' — neatly encapsulate its dual nature, making it a compact and enduring term for our multimedia age.
Relating to or involving both sound and visual images.
"The museum's audiovisual exhibit combined narration with archival footage."
Often abbreviated AV in professional settings.
Audiovisual materials or equipment, especially in a school or library context.
"Please return all borrowed audiovisuals to the media center."
Typically used in the plural.
Used chiefly in educational and library contexts to refer collectively to audiovisual materials.
"The library catalogued hundreds of new audiovisuals this year."
Born in the mid-20th century from Latin roots meaning 'I hear' and 'I see', 'audiovisual' captures in one word the entire modern classroom and cinema experience.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of audiovisual
Audiovisual was formed in English during the early-to-mid twentieth century by combining 'audio-', from Latin audire ('to hear'), with '-visual', from Latin videre ('to see'). Both elements trace back through French and classical Latin roots shared with cognates such as 'audience', 'audible', 'vision', and 'visual'. The compound arose in response to new technologies that paired sound with projected images, particularly in education and public information.
How audiovisual is actually used
Commonly abbreviated AV in institutional contexts such as schools, libraries, and conference venues. The noun use typically occurs in the plural ('audiovisuals').
Easily confused with audiovisual
'Audio' refers only to sound, whereas 'audiovisual' combines both sound and sight.