Waves are a fundamental concept in physics that describe the way energy travels through space. Think of throwing a pebble into a pond: when you do this, you create ripples on the surface of the water. These ripples are waves.In physics, waves are described by three main characteristics: wavelength, frequency, and amplitude. Wavelength refers to the distance between two consecutive peaks or troughs in the wave, while frequency refers to the number of waves that pass by a point in a given amount of time. Amplitude refers to the height of the wave, or the distance from the center line to the peak or trough.There are many different types of waves, including sound waves, light waves, and electromagnetic waves. Sound waves are waves that travel through the air and allow us to hear things, while light waves and electromagnetic waves are responsible for things like vision, radio communication, and X-rays.One important thing to note about waves is that they can be either transverse or longitudinal. Transverse waves move up and down or side to side, while longitudinal waves move back and forth, or in compression and rarefaction patterns. Sound waves are examples of longitudinal waves, while light waves are examples of transverse waves.