coflow
|co-flow|
🇺🇸
/ˈkoʊfloʊ/
🇬🇧
/ˈkəʊfləʊ/
flowing together
Etymology
'coflow' originates as a modern English compound formed from the combining prefix 'co-' (from Latin 'com-' meaning 'together') and the word 'flow' (from Old English 'flowan', meaning 'to flow').
'flow' changed from the Old English word 'flowan' to Middle English 'flowen' and eventually became the modern English word 'flow'. The prefix 'co-' comes from Latin 'com-' and entered English as a productive combining form.
Initially the elements meant 'together' + 'to flow' (i.e., 'to flow together'); over time the compound has retained that core sense and also acquired specialized technical meanings (for example, in networking as an abstraction for grouped flows).
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
in computer networking and distributed systems, a coflow is a collection of related data flows (often belonging to the same job or task) that share a common performance objective and are scheduled or managed as a single unit.
Scheduling coflows rather than individual flows can significantly reduce job completion time in data-parallel applications.
Synonyms
Noun 2
a flow that runs in the same direction as another adjacent flow; a co-flowing stream or current (used in fluid dynamics and general contexts).
The jet produced a coflow along the boundary that reduced shear at the interface.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Verb 1
to flow together or in the same direction as another flow; to move concurrently in the same direction.
During the experiment, the inner and outer streams coflowed for several centimeters.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Last updated: 2025/12/27 09:29