nanosecond

[nan-uh-sek-uhnd, ney-nuh-]

noun

1. one billionth of a second. ns, nsec

nanosecond

/ ˈnænəʊˌsɛkənd /

noun

1. ns. one thousand-millionth of a second

nanosecond

1. One billionth (10 ^{- 9}) of a second.

nanosecond

1. A billionth of a second.

The term is often used to refer to a very short time: “He missed having an accident by nanoseconds.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of nanosecond¹

First recorded in 1955–60; nano- + second ²

Example Sentences

Every metre of distance between two chips adds a nanosecond, one billionth of a second, to the processing time.

From BBC

I just can’t imagine ever describing my son as a p— just to make strangers happy for a nanosecond.

From Los Angeles Times

They’ve measured the cosmic microwave background, or leftover radiation from the Big Bang, with extremely high precision to help paint a picture of the first nanoseconds of the universe.

From Salon

The first half of the show unpacks the sensory systems that leads people to experience flavor in a nanosecond.

From Salon

In addition, the chip performs key computations in less than half a nanosecond.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• blink of an eye www.thesaurus.com
• millisecond