synchronous
6 synonyms and 1 antonym for synchronous, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.
Adjective — Happening or done at the same time as something else.
Synonyms
Less common
Still standard English, but they carry more weight.
Rare, literary or technical
Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.
Synonyms by Meaning
1. adjective
Happening or done at the same time as something else.
“The two clocks are kept synchronous to within a millisecond.”
Opposites
2. adjective
Of teaching, meetings or work: taking place live, with everyone present at the same moment.
“The course mixes synchronous seminars with recorded lectures you watch in your own time.”
Opposites
3. adjective technical
In computing, describing an operation that blocks whatever called it until the operation has finished.
“A synchronous read will freeze the interface until the file loads.”
Opposites
How to use synchronous
The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.
Neutral, though most common in education, engineering and software.
Etymology
From Greek syn- 'together' and chronos 'time', via Late Latin synchronus.
Full origin of synchronous →