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kilobyte

American  
[kil-uh-bahyt] / ˈkɪl əˌbaɪt /

noun

Computers.
  1. 1024 (210 ) bytes.

  2. (loosely) 1000 bytes. K, KB


kilobyte British  
/ ˈkɪləˌbaɪt /

noun

  1. Abbreviation: KB.   kbytecomputing 1024 bytes See also kilo-

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

kilobyte Scientific  
/ kĭlə-bīt′ /
  1. A unit of computer memory or data storage capacity equal to 1,024 (that is, 2 10) bytes.

  2. One thousand bytes.

  3. See Note at megabyte


Etymology

Origin of kilobyte

First recorded in 1965–70; kilo- + byte

Vocabulary lists containing kilobyte

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.

See Examples For:

For example, in a report about computer storage, you might need to define terms such as kilobyte, terabyte, gigabyte, and megabyte.

From Textbooks Dec. 21, 2021

She returned, kilobyte by kilobyte, her dreamscape refilling as she stabilized.

From Nature Jul. 21, 2020

What I have feels like a piercing that can incidentally hold a kilobyte of data, and someone online very aptly compared it to the RFIDs you use to tag your pets.

From The Verge Jul. 31, 2014

When he was 13, his father bought him his first computer, a Sinclair ZX81, which had no monitor and 1 kilobyte of memory.

From New York Times May 5, 2013

Via high-speed data lines—a blazing 1 kilobyte per second—Goddard sent Mission Control real-time information on the spaceship’s current position.

From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly

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