response time

noun

The period of time between the application of a stimulus and the associated response from a cell or tissue.

Similar
reaction timelatencylatent period
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Meanings

nounresponse time (plural response times)

plural response times

  1. biologyThe period of time between the application of a stimulus and the associated response from a cell or tissue.

    Professor G. Fano (Florence), after accurately determining the "latent period," or "response time," following faradic stimulation of a given motor area

    1896, The medical chronicle, page 136
  2. The time taken for a person (or human-controlled system) to respond to a request.

    the average response time on a call was 3.1 minutes

    1931 September 2, “Police Praise Radio as Best Crime Weapon”, in Chicago Tribune
  3. businessThe time taken for the display of an instrument to move to a new value following a step change.
  4. computingThe period of time between a request for a service and the associated response; typically the request is caused by a user at a terminal hitting the return key, and the response is displayed on a screen.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounthe time that elapses between a stimulus and the response to it

Similar
reaction timelatencylatent period
Broader
time intervalinterval
Also see
latencyreaction time

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Translations

Finnish vastausaika, vasteaika
  • vastausaikatime between request and human response
  • vasteaikatime between request and computer service response
  • vasteaikatime between step change and instrument display update
Portuguese tempo de resposta, tempo de resposta
  • tempo de respostatime between request and human response
  • tempo de respostatime between request and computer service response
  • tempo de respostatime between step change and instrument display update
Spanish tiempo responsivo, tiempo responsivo
  • tiempo responsivotime between stimulus and cell or tissue response
  • tiempo responsivotime between request and human response
  • tiempo responsivotime between request and computer service response
  • tiempo responsivotime between step change and instrument display update
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

Source: response time on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.