Amdahl's law

proper noun

A formula giving the theoretical speedup in latency of the execution of a task at fixed workload that can be expected of a system whose resources are improved.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

proper noun
  1. computingA formula giving the theoretical speedup in latency of the execution of a task at fixed workload that can be expected of a system whose resources are improved.

    We can use Amdahl's law to estimate performance improvements when we know the time consumed for some function and its potential speedup.

    2011, David A. Patterson, John L. Hennessy, Computer Organization and Design: The Hardware/Software Interface, Elsevier, →ISBN, page 52

Origin

Named after American computer scientist Gene Amdahl (1922–2015).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian закон на Амдал
  • закон на Амдал (zakon na Amdal)formula for theoretical speedup
Finnish Amdahlin laki
  • Amdahlin lakiformula for theoretical speedup
Cite this entry
APA

Amdahl's law. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Amdahl's%20law

MLA

“Amdahl's law.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Amdahl's%20law. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Amdahl's law,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Amdahl's%20law.

Source: Amdahl's law on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.