What Is an Example of Transmission?

An example of transmission is when a respiratory virus like influenza or SARS‑CoV‑2 spreads from one person to another via droplets during close conversation—tiny particles expelled by the infected person are inhaled by someone nearby, leading to infection. More broadly, “transmission” means the transfer of something—such as disease agents, data, power, or mechanical force—from one place or entity to another, and it appears across health, technology, and engineering.

Understanding the Term Across Contexts

Transmission is a cross‑disciplinary concept. In public health, it explains how pathogens move between hosts. In technology, it describes how information travels. In engineering, it details how torque flows from engines to wheels. The core idea is movement or transfer through a medium or mechanism.

Infectious Disease: How Illness Spreads

A clear, real‑world example is person‑to‑person spread of COVID‑19 or flu: an infected individual coughs in a crowded train, and a nearby passenger inhales droplets or aerosols containing the virus, becoming infected a few days later.

Below are the main ways pathogens are transmitted between people or through the environment.

Respiratory droplets: Larger particles expelled when coughing, sneezing, or talking at close range (e.g., influenza).

Airborne aerosols: Fine particles that can remain suspended and travel farther in poorly ventilated spaces (e.g., measles, some SARS‑CoV‑2 transmission).

Direct contact: Skin‑to‑skin or mucous membrane contact (e.g., herpes simplex).

Indirect contact (fomites): Touching contaminated surfaces and then the face (possible but generally lower risk for many respiratory viruses).

Vector‑borne: Spread via mosquitoes or ticks (e.g., malaria, dengue, Lyme disease).

Foodborne and waterborne: Ingesting contaminated food or water (e.g., norovirus, cholera).

Bloodborne: Exposure to infected blood (e.g., hepatitis B/C).

Sexual transmission: Exchange of bodily fluids during sexual contact (e.g., HIV, syphilis).

Vertical transmission: From pregnant person to fetus or newborn (e.g., HIV, Zika, some forms of hepatitis).

These modes often overlap; the risk depends on the pathogen, environment (ventilation, crowding), behaviors (hand hygiene, masking), and interventions (vaccination, vector control).

Digital and Telecom: Moving Information

Another concrete example is sending a photo from a smartphone to a friend over 5G: your device encodes the image into digital signals, transmits them via radio waves to a nearby cell site, routes data through the internet, and delivers it to the recipient’s device within seconds.

Key components typically involved in digital data transmission include the following elements.

Physical media: Fiber‑optic cables, copper Ethernet, radio spectrum (5G, Wi‑Fi 6/7), satellite links.

Encoding and modulation: Converting bits into signals that travel reliably over the medium.

Protocols: Rules like TCP/IP, HTTP/3, and QUIC that govern routing, reliability, and speed.

Error detection/correction: Techniques (e.g., CRC, FEC) that identify and fix transmission errors.

Security layers: Encryption and authentication (e.g., TLS) to protect data in transit.

Together, these layers ensure data moves quickly and securely from sender to receiver, even across long distances and diverse networks.

Mechanical and Automotive: Delivering Power

In vehicles, a transmission transfers engine torque to the wheels. For example, an 8‑speed automatic adjusts gear ratios to keep the engine in an efficient power band while accelerating onto a highway.

Common transmission types in modern vehicles include the following.

Manual: Driver selects gears via a clutch and gear lever.

Automatic (torque converter): Shifts gears hydraulically/electronically without driver input.

Dual‑clutch (DCT): Alternates between two clutches for faster, efficient shifts.

Continuously variable (CVT): Uses pulleys/belts for seamless ratio changes.

Electric vehicle reduction gear: Single‑speed gearbox leveraging motor torque; some performance EVs use multi‑speed setups.

Hybrid power‑split (e‑CVT): Blends engine and motor power via a planetary gearset.

Each design balances performance, efficiency, cost, and driving feel, but all serve the same purpose: transferring power effectively under varying loads and speeds.

Genetic Inheritance: Passing Traits

In genetics, transmission refers to passing traits from parents to offspring. An example is X‑linked inheritance of color blindness: a mother carrying the gene can transmit it to her son, who expresses the trait due to having a single X chromosome.

Bottom Line

An example of transmission is virus spread via respiratory droplets between people—one of several ways pathogens move. More broadly, transmission is the transfer of something (pathogens, data, mechanical power, or genes) through a medium or mechanism, shaping outcomes in public health, communications, engineering, and biology.

Which is an example of a means of transmission?

Means of transmission are the ways infectious diseases spread, including direct contact (touching, kissing), indirect contact (through contaminated objects like doorknobs), droplet transmission (from coughing, sneezing), airborne transmission (inhalation of aerosols), vector transmission (from animal or insect bites), and fecal-oral transmission (from contact with feces and then the mouth). Other pathways include blood or body fluid transmission, fomites (inanimate objects), and vertical transmission from a mother to her child.
Direct Transmission

Physical contact: Opens in new tabTouching, kissing, or sexual intercourse can spread infections like the common cold, STDs, or ringworm.
Droplet transmission: Opens in new tabRespiratory droplets produced during coughing or sneezing can infect others if they land on the eyes, nose, or mouth.
Vertical transmission: Opens in new tabInfections can be transmitted from a pregnant woman to her fetus or newborn.

Indirect Transmission

Fomites: Germs can be picked up from contaminated surfaces like doorknobs, utensils, or phones.
Vehicles: Contaminated food and water can transmit diseases like hepatitis A.
Airborne transmission: Tiny, long-lasting particles containing the infectious agent can be carried in the air through dust or aerosols, which are then inhaled by another person.
Vector transmission: Animals or insects can act as vectors, either mechanically carrying pathogens on their bodies (like a fly landing on feces) or biologically by harboring the pathogen within them (like a mosquito spreading malaria).
Fecal-oral transmission: This occurs when pathogens from feces (poop) enter the mouth, often through contaminated hands.

Other Means

Blood/Body Fluid Transmission: Opens in new tabInfections can spread through contact with blood or body fluids such as saliva, breast milk, semen, and urine.
Sharps injuries: Opens in new tabAccidental exposure to used needles or other sharp medical instruments can transmit infections.

What is an example of transmission in real life?

A common real-life example of transmission is sunlight passing through a glass window, as the light travels through the glass and into a room. Other examples include radio waves traveling from a tower to a radio, a whisper transmitted through a wall, or a virus being transmitted from a sick person to a healthy one by physical contact.
Wave Transmission

Light: Opens in new tabLight from the sun transmits through the atmosphere, a glass window, or water, allowing us to see and providing natural light.
Sound: Opens in new tabA knock on a door transmits vibrations through the door, allowing the sound to be heard on the other side.
Radio Waves: Opens in new tabRadio signals are transmitted through the air from a broadcasting station to a receiving antenna, allowing you to listen to music or news.

Disease Transmission

Pathogens: Viruses and bacteria can be transmitted from person to person through various means, such as a cold virus being spread by a sneeze, which is a form of transmission.

Mechanical and Electrical Transmission

Data: Opens in new tabFiber optic cables transmit light signals over long distances for internet and telephone services.
Energy: Opens in new tabIn some experiments, the energy of sea waves continues as they pass through a shallow area, showing a similar concept of wave energy being transmitted.

What is the most common form of transmission?

The most common vehicle transmission is the automatic transmission, which uses a torque converter to shift gears without manual input, making it popular for its ease of use and improved fuel efficiency. Automatic transmissions have become the standard in many regions, including the US and Europe, with manual transmissions making up a small minority of new car sales. Other types, like Continuously Variable Transmissions (CVTs) and dual-clutch transmissions, are also used but are less common than traditional torque-converter automatics.
Why automatic transmissions are most common:

Ease of use: Automatics simplify driving by shifting gears automatically, which makes driving less complicated for many drivers, especially in congested city traffic.
Fuel efficiency: Modern automatic transmissions are designed to be more fuel-efficient, often incorporating extra gears and lock-up torque converters to improve gas mileage.
Consumer preference: The convenience and ease of use have led to a strong consumer preference for automatics, particularly in the United States.
Integration with electric and hybrid vehicles: Automatic transmissions are easily integrated with the complex systems of hybrid and electric vehicles, which often do not require a traditional manual clutch.

Types of common transmissions:

Torque converter automatic: Opens in new tabThis is the most prevalent type of automatic, using a fluid-filled torque converter for power transmission and planetary gears for shifting.
Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT): Opens in new tabAnother popular automatic type, a CVT provides a seamless range of gear ratios rather than fixed gears.
Dual-clutch transmission (DCT): Opens in new tabAlso known as automated manual transmissions, these offer faster shifts and a more direct connection than traditional automatics but are less common.

What are examples of transmission?

Examples of transmission include a car’s gearbox shifting between gears (mechanical transmission), a radio signal traveling from a transmitter to a receiver (signal transmission), an infectious disease spreading through droplets from a cough or sneeze (pathogen transmission), or the passing of knowledge from an experienced person to a beginner (information transmission).

Mechanical Examples

Car transmission: Opens in new tabThe system in a vehicle that changes gears to transmit power from the engine to the wheels.
Gear systems: Opens in new tabIn machinery, a system of gears that changes speed and torque, transmitting power from one rotating shaft to another.

Information and Communication Examples

Radio transmission: Radio waves carrying audio signals from a broadcast tower to a radio receiver.
Television broadcast: The transmission of video and audio signals from a television station to viewers’ homes.
Data transmission: The movement of digital data from one computer to another, such as over the internet.
Signal transmission: The act of sending any kind of signal, whether light, sound, or electrical, from one point to another.

Biological and Medical Examples

Disease transmission: Opens in new tabThe spread of an infectious agent, such as a virus or bacteria, from one person or organism to another.
Droplet transmission: Opens in new tabThe spread of pathogens through tiny droplets expelled when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks, as with the flu or COVID-19.
Direct contact transmission: Opens in new tabThe direct transfer of pathogens from an infected person to another, such as through skin-to-skin contact or sexual intercourse.
Indirect transmission: Opens in new tabThe spread of pathogens through an intermediate object, like a contaminated doorknob or surface (a fomite).
Vector-borne transmission: Opens in new tabThe transfer of disease-causing agents by an insect or animal vector, such as the transmission of malaria by mosquitoes.
Maternal-fetal transmission: Opens in new tabThe passing of an infection or genetic material from a mother to her unborn child during pregnancy or birth.

Figurative Examples

Transmission of knowledge: The act of passing information, skills, or ideas from one person or generation to another.
Genetic transmission: The inheritance of genetic material and traits from parents to offspring.