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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
For just a few tens of milliseconds, the ice seemed to lose its structure, dissolving into a mess of molecules before transitioning to its next phase. —
Shalma Wegsman, Quanta Magazine, 27 Apr. 2026 Every millisecond of the track is imprinted with an effect, and yet the mix has miles of space. —Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 25 Apr. 2026 Although Nikki, who has a knack for DIY mechanical engineering, is able to furnish the gang with new gadgets, their plans pretty much always come down to almost getting eaten by some enormous otherworldly creature before being rescued at the last possible millisecond by El’s telekinesis. —Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 23 Apr. 2026 The system tracks fast-moving objects and reacts in milliseconds. —Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 22 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for millisecond
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Shalma Wegsman, Quanta Magazine, 27 Apr. 2026 Every millisecond of the track is imprinted with an effect, and yet the mix has miles of space. —Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 25 Apr. 2026 Although Nikki, who has a knack for DIY mechanical engineering, is able to furnish the gang with new gadgets, their plans pretty much always come down to almost getting eaten by some enormous otherworldly creature before being rescued at the last possible millisecond by El’s telekinesis. —Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 23 Apr. 2026 The system tracks fast-moving objects and reacts in milliseconds. —Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 22 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for millisecond
Cite this Entry
“Millisecond.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/dictionary/millisecond. Accessed 28 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids 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
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