limiting factor

American  

noun

1. Physiology. the slowest, therefore rate-limiting, step in a process or reaction involving several steps.

2. Biology. an environmental factor that tends to limit population size.

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Example Sentences

Relatively high mortgage rates have been a limiting factor for the housing market this year.

From Barron's

AI’s limiting factor is no longer algorithms or data — it’s the brute-force physics of data-center expansion.

From MarketWatch

Even if the reservoir had been full, the flow rate in the system’s pipes “would have been a limiting factor in maintaining pressure and the system would have been quickly overwhelmed” and hydrants would have lost pressure.

From Los Angeles Times

“I think that’s gonna be cool and, you know, when we travel, that’s always sort of the limiting factor when we travel internationally.”

From The Wall Street Journal

“Today, computing is a limiting factor in how much people can adopt AI,” she says, adding that companies have to invest ahead of the curve in order to ensure the technology can meet the needs of a rapidly growing user base.

From The Wall Street Journal