Agency Dictionary

asynchronous

adjectivePronunciation: /eɪˈsɪŋ.krə.nəs/

What does “asynchronous” mean?

Not occurring at the same time or coordinated simultaneously, describing workflows or interactions handled independently across time.

Etymology

Formed in English from the Greek prefix a- ("not") and synchronous, which comes from Late Latin synchronus, from Greek synkhronos, "happening at the same time", made of syn ("together") and khronos ("time"). The adjective dates from the 18th century. Its technical use in telecommunications and computing, for signals and operations that do not depend on a shared clock, and its use for work and teaching that do not happen in real time, belong to the 20th and 21st centuries.

Usage note

Often shortened to async in informal and technical writing, as in "async communication".

Synonyms

non-simultaneous
staggered
out of sync
non-concurrent

Often confused with

anachronistic: Anachronistic means out of its proper historical time; asynchronous means not happening at the same moment as something else.

Word family

asynchrony
asynchronously
synchronous
synchronize
synchrony

Usage examples

Carol and I worked in Flavors of Americas in asynchronous moments, but we ended up meeting each other sometime later in the path of our careers.

Concept

Cultural ImmersionCultural immersion is the transformative experience of living independently within a foreign social environment to absorb new linguistic, academic, and interpersonal…

Source editions

Where this entry comes from in the Agency editorial.

Creative.2 - Carolina JustusApril 14, 2023Read the edition

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