Rales refers to abnormal breath sounds heard on auscultation of the lungs. It's an important clinical finding that doctors use to identify respiratory disorders like pneumonia, bronchitis, asthma, and other respiratory conditions. Synonyms for this term include crackles, crepitations, and subcrepitant rales. Crackles describe fine, discontinuous, and high-pitched sounds produced by air moving through fluid or blocked small airways. Crepitations refer to crackling sounds heard during movement and bodily processes. Subcrepitant rales are heard in the presence of water in the small bronchioles and alveoli. Understanding synonyms of rales is imperative for accurate communication and diagnosis in medical settings.