real time

¹ American  

[ree-uhl, reel] / ˈri əl, ril /

noun

1. Computers. the actual time elapsed in the performance of a computation by a computer, the result of the computation being required for the continuation of a physical process.

2. the actual time during which a process takes place or an event occurs.

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idioms

1. in real time, at once; instantaneously.

real-time ² American  

[ree-uhl-tahym, reel-] / ˈri əlˈtaɪm, ˈril- /

adjective

Computers.

1. of or relating to applications in which the computer must respond as rapidly as required by the user or necessitated by the process being controlled.

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real-time British  

adjective

1. denoting or relating to a data-processing system in which a computer receives constantly changing data, such as information relating to air-traffic control, travel booking systems, etc, and processes it sufficiently rapidly to be able to control the source of the data

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real-time Cultural  

1. A term used to describe computer systems that update information at the same rate as they receive data.

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Etymology

Origin of real time

First recorded in 1950–55

Example Sentences

“That is the problem with trading a tape that is being written in real time by geopolitics rather than grounded in anything stable,” Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, said.

From Barron's • Apr. 20, 2026

This allowed them to calculate how much heat the fish produce and lose in real time.

From Science Daily • Apr. 18, 2026

"Seeing the effects of the various tests they were running actually modifying what we were seeing from the signal in real time, that was something really special," he said.

From BBC • Apr. 18, 2026

To prepare for this summer, the Eastlands have installed a series of water meters that measure river levels and currents in real time and will sound alarms automatically.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 18, 2026

Caught up, she began cracking messages in real time, many of them from the West Coast.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield