latency

[leyt-n-see]

noun

plural

latencies 

1. the state of being latent.

2. latent period.

3. Computers.,  the period of delay when one component of a hardware system is waiting for an action to be executed by another component.

4. Digital Technology.,  the time required online or in a network for the one-way or round-trip transfer of data between two nodes.

5. Digital Technology.,  (in virtual reality and other types of simulation) the discrepancy between the time delay of stimulus and response in the simulation as compared to the real-world equivalent.

Word History and Origins

Origin of latency¹

First recorded in 1630–40; lat(ent) + -ency

Example Sentences

Traditional electronics can no longer reduce latency or increase throughput enough to keep up with today's data-heavy applications.

Read more on Science Daily

SoundHound initially chose Oracle as a cloud vendor because the company was looking for a “true partner” and a platform that could provide zero latency, she added.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The AI processing cabinets are jammed in together to eliminate this element of latency and create what the tech sector calls parallel processing, operating as one enormous computer.

Read more on BBC

With their long latency periods - time between exposure to a cancer-causing factor and the appearance of detectable cancer - treatment outcomes are relatively good.

Read more on BBC

An update posted on the Microsoft website on Saturday said that Azure traffic going through the Middle East "may experience increased latency due to undersea fibre cuts in the Red Sea".

Read more on BBC