timescale

British

/ ˈtaɪmˌskeɪl /

noun

the span of time within which certain events occur or are scheduled to occur considered in relation to any broader period of time

"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

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.

Elon Musk’s rosy predictions for robotics could also come on a longer timescale than currently anticipated, they write, noting that earlier ambitious longer-term projections for vehicle sales and robotaxis have not been met.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

After knocking out an electron from the neon atom using soft X-rays, they followed how the system evolved for up to a picosecond, which is extremely long on an atomic timescale, before the decay occurred.

From Science Daily • Mar. 24, 2026

"Seeing it happen on this timescale within a single molecular vibration is extraordinary," said Dr. Ghosh.

From Science Daily • Mar. 6, 2026

His phone was analysed following the attacks but the exact timescale of when the content was viewed has not yet been revealed.

From BBC • Feb. 23, 2026

“We’d had two months of warning, but nothing on a socially useful timescale, where you can react and do enough. Months are too long, and seconds are too short,” said Malone.

From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone

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