Runtime

How to spell runtime

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce runtime

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does runtime mean?

1. nounThe period during which a computer program is executing, as opposed to when it is being written or compiled.
2. nounThe total length of time that something, such as a film or process, takes to play or complete.

Runtime in a sentence

• The bug only appears at runtime, never while the code is being compiled.

• The documentary has a runtime of just under two hours.

• The application checks the user's permissions at runtime before loading any data.

• The report shortened the batch job's runtime from forty minutes to twelve.

Where does runtime come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This is a modern English compound built from two of the oldest native words in the language. 'Run' descends from Old English rinnan, meaning 'to move swiftly on foot' or 'to flow', a verb with Germanic roots shared across Dutch and German. 'Time' comes from Old English tima, meaning 'a limited stretch or appointed period', from a Proto-Germanic source also linked to the idea of something being 'divided up'. The two were welded together in the twentieth century, chiefly in engineering and then computing, to name the period during which a machine or program is actually operating rather than being designed or compiled. Because both halves are everyday words spelled exactly as they sound, the only real trap is remembering that modern usage joins them into one solid word with no space or hyphen.

How the word is built

• run (to execute or operate)
• time (a period or duration)