small-world network

noun

A kind of graph in which most nodes are not neighbors but most can be reached from every other by a small number of steps, i.e. the typical distance between two randomly chosen nodes grows proportionally to the logarithm of the number of nodes in the network.

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Meanings

nounsmall-world network (plural small-world networks)

plural small-world networks

  1. mathematicsA kind of graph in which most nodes are not neighbors but most can be reached from every other by a small number of steps, i.e. the typical distance between two randomly chosen nodes grows proportionally to the logarithm of the number of nodes in the network.
Cite this entry
APA

small-world network. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/small-world%20network

MLA

“small-world network.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/small-world%20network. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “small-world network,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/small-world%20network.

Source: small-world network on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.