synchronous
adj.adj. happening at the same time as something else. In computing, it means that two or more processes work together in a way that they are perfectly timed.
adj. occurring, existing, or taking place at the same time. In a technical context, it describes processes or systems that are coordinated to operate in a precisely timed sequence.
The two clocks are perfectly synchronous.
The software uses synchronous communication to ensure that the server and client update their data at the exact same moment.
In a synchronous network, data packets are transmitted at regular intervals, allowing the receiver to predict exactly when to expect the next bit of information.
Borrowed from Late Latin synchronus, from Ancient Greek σύγχρονος (súnkhronos, “contemporaneous”), from σῠν- (sŭn-, “with, together”) + χρόνος (khrónos, “time”). By surface analysis, syn- + chron- + -ous = synchrony + -ous; however, all related words (e.g., synchronic, synchrony, synchronicity, diachronous, diachronic, diachrony, diachronicity) were coined later, either as back-formations from, or otherwise by analogy with the surface analysis of, synchronous.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Adjectiveasynchronous
- Adjectivesynchronous
Last updated May 18, 2026