Nanosecond
noun
A nanosecond is a unit of time that is equal to one billionth of a second.
The speed of light is approximately one foot per nanosecond.
Often appears as...
- waste a nanosecond
- every nanosecond counts
Usage tips
Technical
noun
In a casual or exaggerated context, a nanosecond can mean a very short length of time.
I recognized him in a nanosecond.
Often appears as...
- wait a nanosecond
- blink of a nanosecond
Usage tips
Informal
Colloquial
noun
A nanosecond is a unit of time that is equal to one billionth of a second.
The speed of light is approximately one foot per nanosecond.
Often appears as...
- waste a nanosecond
- every nanosecond counts
Usage tips
Technical
noun
In a casual or exaggerated context, a nanosecond can mean a very short length of time.
I recognized him in a nanosecond.
Often appears as...
- wait a nanosecond
- blink of a nanosecond
Usage tips
Informal
Colloquial
Definition 1 of 2
Pro Tip 1/3Technical Precision
Used in sciences to measure extremely quick events, where accuracy matters.
Modern processors operate at speeds measured in nanoseconds.
Pro Tip 2/3Literal Sense
Remember that in technical contexts, 'nanosecond' strictly means one billionth of a second.
Data travels through optical fibers at milliseconds, not nanoseconds.
Pro Tip 3/3Not for Duration
Though very short, it's not used to express duration in common human experiences.
He hesitated for a moment, not a couple of nanoseconds, before replying.
Pro Tip 1/3Technical Precision
Used in sciences to measure extremely quick events, where accuracy matters.
Modern processors operate at speeds measured in nanoseconds.
Pro Tip 2/3Literal Sense
Remember that in technical contexts, 'nanosecond' strictly means one billionth of a second.
Data travels through optical fibers at milliseconds, not nanoseconds.
Pro Tip 3/3Not for Duration
Though very short, it's not used to express duration in common human experiences.
He hesitated for a moment, not a couple of nanoseconds, before replying.
Pro Tip 1/3Technical Precision
Used in sciences to measure extremely quick events, where accuracy matters.
Modern processors operate at speeds measured in nanoseconds.
Pro Tip 2/3Literal Sense
Remember that in technical contexts, 'nanosecond' strictly means one billionth of a second.
Data travels through optical fibers at milliseconds, not nanoseconds.
Pro Tip 3/3Not for Duration
Though very short, it's not used to express duration in common human experiences.
He hesitated for a moment, not a couple of nanoseconds, before replying.
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Video examples
Questions No One Knows...
are now telling us there could be countless other universes built on different types of particles, with different properties, obeying different laws. Most of these universes could never support life, and might flash in and out of existence in a nanosecond.
Video examples
Adam Spencer: Why I fell...
you are at a critical juncture in your life here, my friend. You can keep sitting here with us. Any more of that sort of talk, you've got to go and sit over there with them." I thought about it for a nanosecond. I took one look at the road map of life,
Video examples
Gangsters in Lockup PIPE...
Bulldog takes lifetime to build a reputation in the earn respect no one takes ten seconds to lose that nanosecond you can be home just like that
Video examples
Questions No One Knows...
are now telling us there could be countless other universes built on different types of particles, with different properties, obeying different laws. Most of these universes could never support life, and might flash in and out of existence in a nanosecond.
Video examples
Adam Spencer: Why I fell...
you are at a critical juncture in your life here, my friend. You can keep sitting here with us. Any more of that sort of talk, you've got to go and sit over there with them." I thought about it for a nanosecond. I took one look at the road map of life,
Video examples
Gangsters in Lockup PIPE...
Bulldog takes lifetime to build a reputation in the earn respect no one takes ten seconds to lose that nanosecond you can be home just like that
Example 1 of 3
Quote examples
Jason McCoy
Canadian Musician
I listen more to music when I'm on my computer. I'm into the latest YouTube thing. I'm a nanosecond kind of listener, but if I'm driving I would be listening to a Merle Haggard box set. It's a weird experience listening to 'Working Man Blues' by Merle Haggard and cruising around in a Porsche.
Quote examples
Charlie Rose
American Journalist
Nighttime, in a nanosecond, asleep by 10:30. No chance I'll get through the day without two naps. Before noon, around 11 A.M. I catch 30 minutes. Living not far from CBS is perfect because afternoons I go home for another.
Quote examples
Julia Glass
American Novelist
When I give myself over to a good novel, I surrender to the truths fashioned from one writer's heart, mind and soul. I do not waste a nanosecond wondering whether what I'm reading 'really happened.
Quote examples
Suzy Menkes
British Journalist
Smartphones are so fabulous in so many ways that it seems daft to be nostalgic about the days when an image did not go round the world in a nanosecond.
Quote examples
George Lois
American Artist
Truly great images make all the other millions of images you look at unimportant. You gotta look at an image and understand it in a nanosecond.
Quote examples
Kenneth Branagh
Irish Actor
For a nanosecond in the pre-Internet pre-digital age, I was a hot young actor, in the sense of popular, and then it passed.
Quote examples
Elizabeth Vargas
American Journalist
I would not hesitate for a nanosecond to step in front of a bullet, to do anything to give my life for my children.
Quote examples
Rufus Wainwright
Canadian Musician
As an artist, you put so much into what you do and it can all be torn down in a nanosecond.
Quote examples
Warren Christopher
American Statesman
I had all of one nanosecond to savor the news before we had to move on to other problems.
Quote examples
Adina Porter
American Actress
One-liners that must land perfectly in just the right nanosecond can be terrifying.
Quote examples
Jason McCoy
Canadian Musician
I listen more to music when I'm on my computer. I'm into the latest YouTube thing. I'm a nanosecond kind of listener, but if I'm driving I would be listening to a Merle Haggard box set. It's a weird experience listening to 'Working Man Blues' by Merle Haggard and cruising around in a Porsche.
Quote examples
Charlie Rose
American Journalist
Nighttime, in a nanosecond, asleep by 10:30. No chance I'll get through the day without two naps. Before noon, around 11 A.M. I catch 30 minutes. Living not far from CBS is perfect because afternoons I go home for another.
Quote examples
Julia Glass
American Novelist
When I give myself over to a good novel, I surrender to the truths fashioned from one writer's heart, mind and soul. I do not waste a nanosecond wondering whether what I'm reading 'really happened.
Quote examples
Suzy Menkes
British Journalist
Smartphones are so fabulous in so many ways that it seems daft to be nostalgic about the days when an image did not go round the world in a nanosecond.
Quote examples
George Lois
American Artist
Truly great images make all the other millions of images you look at unimportant. You gotta look at an image and understand it in a nanosecond.
Quote examples
Kenneth Branagh
Irish Actor
For a nanosecond in the pre-Internet pre-digital age, I was a hot young actor, in the sense of popular, and then it passed.
Quote examples
Elizabeth Vargas
American Journalist
I would not hesitate for a nanosecond to step in front of a bullet, to do anything to give my life for my children.
Quote examples
Rufus Wainwright
Canadian Musician
As an artist, you put so much into what you do and it can all be torn down in a nanosecond.
Quote examples
Warren Christopher
American Statesman
I had all of one nanosecond to savor the news before we had to move on to other problems.
Quote examples
Adina Porter
American Actress
One-liners that must land perfectly in just the right nanosecond can be terrifying.
Example 1 of 10
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