Meaning & use
audiophile
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Meanings
nouncountable
Someone who cares deeply about how music sounds and spends time and money on equipment to hear recordings as faithfully as possible.
Grammar: Refers to a person: an audiophile, many audiophiles.
Patterns
- an audiophile who loves something
My uncle is an audiophile and owns a turntable that cost more than my car.
Audiophiles often argue about whether vinyl sounds warmer than digital files.
The shop is a favorite among audiophiles looking for rare amplifiers.
adjectivebefore a noun
Designed for or aimed at people who value very high sound quality.
Grammar: Used before a noun: audiophile headphones.
Patterns
- audiophile quality
The label released an audiophile edition of the album on heavy vinyl.
She bought audiophile headphones for her commute.
The store sells audiophile cables of all lengths.
Word forms
| plural | audiophiles |
|---|
Common combinations
- self-confessed audiophile
- As a self-confessed audiophile, he refuses to stream low-quality files.
- audiophile headphones
- Her audiophile headphones brought out every detail.
- audiophile recording
- The audiophile recording was made in a concert hall.
- hardcore audiophile
- Only a hardcore audiophile would notice the difference.
- audiophile system
- They built an audiophile system in the spare room.
Synonyms and how they differ
- hi-fi enthusiast
- Hi-fi enthusiast is a plainer phrase and a little old-fashioned, and covers anyone who enjoys good equipment without implying obsession.
- music lover
- Music lover refers to love of the music itself, whereas an audiophile cares about the quality of the sound.
- sound buff
- Sound buff is informal and rare, and suggests a hobbyist more than a perfectionist.
Word family
Commonly confused: audiophile or audiologist?
audiophile vs audiologist
An audiologist is a health professional who tests hearing, not someone who loves high-quality sound.
Practice
Which person is best described as an audiophile?
Choose one answer.
An audiophile is devoted to high-quality sound reproduction. Testing hearing is audiology, and the other roles do not centre on sound quality.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “audiophile”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.