Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The lagging of an effect behind its cause, as when the change in magnetism of a body lags behind changes in the magnetic field.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A lagging of one of two related phenomena behind the other.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Physics) A lagging or retardation of the effect, when the forces acting upon a body are changed, as if from velocity or internal friction; a temporary resistance to change from a condition previously induced, observed in magnetism, thermoelectricity, etc., on reversal of polarity.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A property of a system such that an output value is not a strict function of the corresponding input, but also incorporates some lag, delay, or history dependence, and in particular when the response for a decrease in the input variable is different from the response for an increase. For example, a thermostat with a nominal setpoint of 75° might switch the controlled heat source on when the temperature drops below 74°, and off when it rises above 76°.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the lagging of an effect behind its cause; especially the phenomenon in which the magnetic induction of a ferromagnetic material lags behind the changing magnetic field

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Greek husterēsis, a shortcoming, from husterein, to come late, from husteros, late; see ud- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Coined by Sir James Alfred Ewing from Ancient Greek ὑστέρησις (husterēsis, "shortcoming"), from ὑστερέω (hustereō, "I am late, fall short"), from ὕστερος (husteros, "later").

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