downtime
Americannoun
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a time during a regular working period when an employee is not actively productive.
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an interval during which a machine is not productive, as during repair, malfunction, maintenance.
noun
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commerce time during which a machine or plant is not working because it is incapable of production, as when under repair: the term is sometimes used to include all nonproductive time Compare idle time
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informal time spent not working; spare time
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of downtime
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Downtime between shots, too, was usually spent lifting.
From Seattle Times • Dec. 19, 2023
Downtime has been a boon to Simmons in the past.
From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2019
Apple is pitching Downtime as a parental control feature, though presumably an adult could schedule one’s own quiet hours as well.
From Slate • Jun. 4, 2018
Downtime is spent flipping between the odd script – he can be picky these days – and titles such as The Sensational Baby Sleep Plan.
From The Guardian • Nov. 6, 2016
Some More Than Others Your Brain on Computers: Digital Devices Deprive Brain of Needed Downtime Time without digital input can allow people to learn better or come up with new ideas.
From New York Times • Aug. 25, 2010
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
