Ultrasound vs. Sonogram

A sonogram is the image generated during ultrasonography, which is a diagnostic imaging technique that uses ultrasound to visualize anything inside the body.

Ultrasound is sound with a frequency above the range audible to humans, about 20 kHz. Both words are used to refer to the ultrasonography procedure.


When ultrasound waves are sent into the human body some of them bounce back when they hit tissues of differing density. The time it takes the reflected ultrasound waves to return to the machine is translated into an image of the internal organ, or of a fetus. This image is called a sonogram.

Ultrasound is used in industry to measure the purity or uniformity of liquid, to measure the depth of water, and to search for underwater objects such as submarines. Whales and dolphins use ultrasound to communicate.