echoed

Echoed is the past tense and past participle of the verb to echo. An echo is a sound that is reflected off a surface and heard again. The noun and its verb form trace back to the Greek ekkōn, with the mythological nymph Echo shaping the figurative sense of repetition. In modern usage, echoed indicates that something has been repeated or reverberated.

In acoustics, an echo occurs when sound waves reflect from distant surfaces and return to the listener after a delay. For a distinct echo to be perceived, the delay is typically around 50 to 100 milliseconds or longer, though the exact threshold depends on sound level, frequency, and the listening environment. Complex surroundings can produce multiple reflections, creating echoes in rapid succession or a lingering reverberant tail rather than a single, discrete echo.

Beyond literal sound, echoed is commonly used metaphorically to describe repetition of ideas, events, or memories. In literature and journalism, a motif or statement may be said to be echoed elsewhere in a text or in related works. In music and audio production, echo effects can cause notes or voices to be heard again after the original, producing an echoed texture.