complexity function

noun

A function that counts the number of distinct factors (substrings of consecutive symbols) in a string of symbols;

Meanings

nouncomplexity function (plural complexity functions)

plural complexity functions

  1. computingA function that counts the number of distinct factors (substrings of consecutive symbols) in a string of symbols;

    It follows that #92;bullet The length function l#58;A#42;#92;longrightarrow#92;mathcalN is a complexity function on A#42;.

    2002, A. V. Borovnik, A. G. Myasnikov, V. Shpilrain, “Measuring Sets in Infinite Groups”, in Robert H. Gilman, Alexei G. Myasnikov, Vladimir Shpilrain, editors, Computational and Statistical Group Theory, American Mathematical Society, page 27
    1 more example

    2003, Julien Cassaigne, Constructing Infinite Words of Intermediate Complexity, Masami Ito, Masafumi Toyama (editors), Developments in Language Theory: 6th International Conference, 6th International Conference, DLT 2002, Revised Papers, Springer, LNCS 2450, page 173, We present two constructions of infinite words with a complexity function that grows faster than any polynomial, but slower than any exponential.

  2. A function that counts the number of distinct factors (substrings of consecutive symbols) in a string of symbols; (of a formal language) a function that counts the number of words of a given length.
    1. computinga function that counts the number of words of a given length.
  3. computingA function representing the computational complexity an algorithm.

    2003, Roberto Segala, Verification of Randomized Distributed Algorithms, Ed Brinksma, Holger Hermanns, Joost-Pieter Katoen (editors), Lectures on Formal Methods and Performance Analysis, Springer, LNCS 2090, page 253, Let ϕ be a complexity function.

    2 more examples

    A complexity function need not have a quadratic term to be in O(n²). It need only eventually lie beneath some pure quadratic function on a graph. Therefore, any logarithmic or linear complexity function is in O(n²).

    2011, Richard Neapolitan, Kumarss Naimipour, Foundations of Algorithms, 4th edition, Jones & Bartlett Publishers, page 31

    Hence, the worst case time complexity function of Floyd's algorithm is O(n³).

    2014, R. Panneerselvam, Research Methodology, 2nd edition, PHI Learning, page 512

Translations

German Komplexitätsfunktion, Komplexitätsfunktion
  • Komplexitätsfunktionfunction that counts distinct words of a given length in a language
  • Komplexitätsfunktionfunction that represents the computational complexity of an algorithm
  • Komplexitätsfunktionfunction that counts distinct factors of a string
Cite this entry
APA

complexity function. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/complexity%20function

MLA

“complexity function.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/complexity%20function. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “complexity function,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/complexity%20function.

Source: complexity function on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.