reaction time
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of reaction time
First recorded in 1875–80
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.
The condition could explain why Isak’s knee collapsed, his inability to correct his posture and reduced his reaction time during a fall, Jonathan’s lawyers said.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026
While Singapore-based Sharpa already offers a convincing humanoid table tennis robot with a reaction time of just two hundredths of a second, there is no equivalent on the market for tennis.
From Barron's • Jan. 9, 2026
Bumrah somehow gets his hand about 40cm ahead of his front foot, cutting the distance between himself and the batter, thus reducing the batter's reaction time.
From BBC • Jun. 22, 2025
Distractions slow the reaction time of automated vehicle remote drivers by over five seconds, new research has shown.
From Science Daily • Nov. 21, 2024
Hermann von Helmholtz used one to measure the reaction time of a frog.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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.
