packet switching

American

[pak-it-swich-ing] / ˈpæk ɪtˌswɪtʃ ɪŋ /

Or packet-switching

noun

a method of efficient data transmission whereby the initial message is broken into relatively small units, or packets, that are routed independently and subsequently reassembled.

packet switching British

noun

computing the concentration of data into units that are allocated an address prior to transmission

"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

packet switching Scientific

/ păk′ĭt /

A method of network data transmission, in which small blocks of data, or packets, are transmitted over a channel which, for the duration of the packet's transmission, is dedicated to that packet alone and is not interrupted to transmit other packets. This strategy is used in transmitting data over the Internet and often over a LAN, and it capitalizes on the increase in efficiency that is obtained when there are many paths available and there is a large volume of traffic over these paths.

Etymology

Origin of packet switching

First recorded in 1970–75

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023