millisecond

noun

mil·​li·​sec·​ond ˈmi-lə-ˌse-kənd 

-kənt

: one thousandth of a second

Did you know?

A millisecond isn't long enough for the blink of an eye, but a few milliseconds may determine the winner of a swim race or a hundred-yard dash. With the ever-increasing speed of modern technology, even a millisecond has started to seem a little sluggish; computer operations are now measured in nanoseconds—that is, billionths of a second.

Examples of millisecond in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The four-motor layout enables advanced millisecond-level torque vectoring, allowing software to independently modulate power delivery to each wheel to maximize grip, cornering performance, and high-speed stability. — New Atlas, 7 Aug. 2026

For firms that spend millions of dollars chasing advantages in the race to execute trades, those milliseconds can be worth far more than the six-figure subscription price. — Joshua Hong, Fortune, 4 Aug. 2026

The reactor will heat plasma above 100 million degrees Celsius, roughly seven times hotter than the sun’s core, and no material wall can touch matter that hot for more than milliseconds. — Jon Markman, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026

That presents opportunities for what are known as high-frequency traders, who specialize in buying and selling within milliseconds, exploiting tiny, fleeting difference in prices. — Arkansas Online, 2 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

International Scientific Vocabulary

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for millisecond

• femtosecond
• microsecond
• nanosecond
• picosecond
• beckoned
• reckoned
• second
• seconde

Kids Definition

millisecond

noun

mil·​li·​sec·​ond ˈmil-ə-ˌsek-ənd 

also -ənt

: one thousandth of a second

Medical Definition

millisecond

noun

mil·​li·​sec·​ond ˈmil-ə-ˌsek-ənd, -ənt 

: one thousandth of a second

—abbreviation ms, msec