Final answer:
Waves are categorized mainly as mechanical or electromagnetic, with sound waves being mechanical and light waves being electromagnetic. There's also a sub-classification for sound based on frequency, including audible, ultrasonic, and infrasonic waves. Other terms like thermal, electrical, magnetic, chemical, and nuclear, refer to energy forms rather than wave types.
Step-by-step explanation:
There are different types of waves categorized based on how they propagate and their physical characteristics. These categories include mechanical waves, such as sound and water waves, which require a medium to travel through. Electromagnetic waves, on the other hand, can propagate through a vacuum and do not require a medium. Examples of electromagnetic waves include radio waves, microwaves, infrared radiation, visible light, ultraviolet radiation, X-rays, and gamma rays. Each type of electromagnetic wave has a different frequency and wavelength. Sound waves can be further classified into audible for humans, ultrasonic frequencies that are higher than humans can hear, and infrasonic frequencies that are too low for humans to hear. Other types of waves mentioned, such as thermal, electrical, magnetic, chemical, and nuclear, are not typically classified as waves in the physical sense but refer to different forms of energy and their associated phenomena.