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Original · left

Echo (sound)

The acoustic reverberation of a sound wave bouncing off canyon walls back to the listener.

First in use: ancient / pre-modern
Duplicate · right

echo (command)

A command-line utility that outputs strings of text directly back to the terminal screen or into a file stream.

First in use: the 1970s

Echo / Echo (sound) / echo (command)

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Canyon reverberations vs. the shell command.

Which meaning of Echo is the original, and which one is the duplicate riding on its name? Echo (sound) came first (ancient / pre-modern). echo (command) arrived in the 1970s. The data below shows which one owns the word now.

Wikipedia pageviews since 2015

Echo (sound)echo (command)
English Wikipedia pageviews since July 2015 load here.

Duplicate's share of attention

Green line = duplicate's % · above 60 it owns the word · below 40 the original does

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The case for each meaning

Sourced definitions, usage stats and quotes

Original · ancient / pre-modern

Echo (sound)

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Duplicate · the 1970s

echo (command)

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More duplicated terms

Programming & software