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latency

LAY-tuhn-see /ˈleɪ.tən.si/

nounC1GRETOEFL

technicalprofessional

The delay or lag between a user's action and the web application's or network's response.

Latency measures the time it takes for a single packet of data to travel from its source to its destination, distinct from bandwidth which measures volume.

The story behind the word. From the Latin 'latentia', from 'latere', meaning 'to lie hidden'. In computing, it describes the hidden delay or waiting time before data begins to transfer after an instruction is given.

Word relationships

lag: Lag is the visible, annoying delay experienced by the user, while latency is the technical measurement of that delay in milliseconds.

responsiveness: Responsiveness refers to a system's ability to react immediately to user input, indicating low latency.

Commonly confused with

throughput: Throughput is the actual amount of data successfully processed over a period, whereas latency is the time delay for a single data transfer to begin.

Word family

latent (adjective): Existing but not yet active or visible.

Collocations

low latency
network latency
reduce latency

Example sentences

"High network latency can cause significant lag during video calls, making real-time conversation difficult." A performance review of a video conferencing tool.

Memory hook

Think of 'latency' as 'late-ency'—the system is running 'late' because of the delay. The hidden delay that makes data late.

When not to use

Do not use to describe a complete system outage or a software crash; it refers only to the delay in transmission.

Fun facts

In high-frequency financial trading, a latency of even one millisecond can cost trading firms millions of dollars, leading them to lay direct fiber-optic cables through mountains to shave off microseconds.