single-threaded
|sin-gle-thread-ed|
/ˌsɪŋɡəlˈθrɛdɪd/
one execution thread
Etymology
'single-threaded' is a modern English compound formed from 'single' and 'threaded'. 'single' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'singulus', where 'singu-' meant 'one, individual'. 'thread' originates from Old English 'þrǣd', where 'þrǣd' meant 'a filament or line'. 'threaded' is the adjectival/past-participial form derived from 'thread'.
'single' entered English via Old French 'sengle'/'single' from Latin 'singulus'. 'thread' existed in Old English as 'þrǣd' (Middle English 'thred'). The compound 'single-threaded' is a 20th-century English formation, gaining prominence in computing jargon to describe execution models that use a single thread of execution.
Originally, 'thread' primarily meant a physical filament; over time it acquired figurative senses (a line of thought, a sequence). With computing, 'thread' developed the technical meaning 'thread of execution', and 'single-threaded' shifted from literal 'one-thread' descriptions to the technical sense 'runs on one execution thread'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
in computing, describing software, a process, or an execution model that runs on a single thread of execution (i.e., does not perform concurrent or parallel execution across multiple threads).
The program is single-threaded, so it cannot use multiple cores to run tasks in parallel.
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Adjective 2
figuratively, describing a person, approach, or process that proceeds in a single, linear, or narrowly focused way (not multitasking or handling multiple lines of thought at once).
Her reasoning was a bit single-threaded, focusing only on one possible cause.
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Last updated: 2025/12/27 00:46