central processing unit

noun

Definition of central processing unit

: cpu

Examples of central processing unit in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

To that end, components of the A12X include: A CPU (central processing unit), which carries out most instructions that are not specialized to other processing units. — Samuel Axon, Ars Technica, "Apple walks Ars through the iPad Pro’s A12X system on a chip," 7 Nov. 2018 Traditionally, the brain in most PCs has been the CPU, or the central processing unit. — Brian Fung, chicagotribune.com, "How video games helped give us the self-driving car," 5 July 2017 For enterprises, the virtual gold rush can put corporate networks at risk and inflate cloud central processing unit usage, adding cost. — Bloomberg.com, "Sweden Is Becoming a Haven for Cryptojackers," 23 Mar. 2018 These new bugs are actually in the computer’s hardware — specifically, in the central processing unit. — J. D. Biersdorfer, New York Times, "Keeping Up With the Meltdown and Spectre Bugs," 15 Jan. 2018 The security flaws are located in each computer's brain, known as the central processing unit or CPU. — Alyssa Newcomb, NBC News, "Meltdown, Spectre chip flaws raise questions about hardware security," 4 Jan. 2018 Security researchers also said users should be aware of signs that their computer is being used as a mining machine--the device’s fans may start making noise, for example, or there could be a spike in central processing unit usage. — Adam Janofsky, WSJ, "How to Keep ‘Cryptojackers’ Off Your Devices As Bitcoin Soars," 21 Dec. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'central processing unit.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.