[deci.bel] n [ISV deci- + bel] (1928) 1 a: a unit for expressing the ratio of two amounts of electric or acoustic signal power equal to
10. times the common logarithm of this ratio b: a unit for expressing the ratio of the magnitudes of two electric voltages or currents or analogous acoustic quantities equal to 20 times the common logarithm of the voltage or current ratio
2: a unit for expressing the relative intensity of sounds on a scale from zero for the average least perceptible sound to about 130 for the average pain level
3: degree of loudness; also: extremely loud sound--usu. used in pl.