Question

What is the difference between a deafening sound and a loud sound?

Answer 1

A deafening sound is a noise which is so high in amplitude and frequency which can make you deaf, whereas a loud sound can seem unpleasant but it does not usually cause long time effects.

Explanation:

Sound up to 80 decibels can be very loud.

• at `91` decibels, your ears can tolerate up to two hours of exposure.
• at `100` decibels, damage can occur with `15` minutes of exposure.
• at `112` decibels, damage can occur with only one minute of exposure.
• at `140` decibels, immediate nerve damage can occur.

The above was taken from here.

So these are the levels of a deafening sound.