UHF

What Does UHF Mean in a Text?

The Quick Answer

UHF (Ultra-High Frequency) is the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) designation for radio frequencies in the 300 MHz to 3 GHz range.

More Detail...

These frequencies are used for television broadcasting, cell phones, satellite communication including GPS, personal radio services including Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, two-way radios, cordless phones, and many other applications. Radio waves with frequencies above the UHF band fall into the SHF (Super-High Frequency) or microwave frequency range. Lower frequency signals fall into the VHF (Very-High Frequency) range. UHF radio waves propagate mainly by line of sight (the signal travels in a straight line between transmitter and receiver), and they are blocked by hills and disrupted by large buildings. The main advantage of UHF transmission is that because the size of reception antenna relates to the size of the radio wave, the UHF antenna is more compact and less conspicuous than those required for lower frequencies. The major disadvantage of UHF is that because broadcast range reduces as frequency increases, UHF has a much shorter broadcast range than VHF.

Image for UHF

When I write UHF, I mean this:

The image shows where UHF fits in the frequency spectrum.

Summary of Key Points

We have summarized the key points in the table below:

UHF
Definition:	Ultra-High Frequency
Type:	Abbreviation
Guessability:	3: Guessable
Typical Users:	Adults and Teenagers

Examples of UHF in Sentences

Here is an example of UHF in a conversation:

Charlie: I bought the UHF wireless headphones instead of Bluetooth because the range is better.
Jordan: Nice, but you still won't be able to go too far.

An Academic Look at UHF

UHF is an initialism abbreviation. This means it is pronounced using its individual letters (i.e., Yu Aich Eff). Initialisms contrast with acronyms, which are spoken like words.