] Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
| central processing unit
n. Abbr. CPU The part of a computer that interprets and executes instructions. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
| central processing unit | |
noun | |
| (computer science) the part of a computer (a microprocessor chip) that does most of the data processing; "the CPU and the memory form the central part of a computer to which the peripherals are attached" |
| central processing unit
The part of a computer that interprets and carries out instructions provided by the software. It tests and manipulates data, and transfers information to and from other components, such as the working memory, disk drive, monitor, and keyboard. The central processing units of personal computers are generally implemented on a single chip, called a microprocessor.
|
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
central processing unit architecture, processor
(CPU, processor) The part of a computer which controls all the other parts. Designs vary widely but the CPU generally consists of the control unit, the arithmetic and logic unit (ALU), registers, temporary buffers and various other logic.
The control unit fetches instructions from memory and decodes them to produce signals which control the other parts of the computer. These signals cause it to transfer data between memory and ALU or to activate peripherals to perform input or output.
Various types of memory, including cache, RAM and ROM, are often considered to be part of the CPU, particularly in modern microprocessors where a single integrated circuit may contain one or more processors as well as any or all of the above types of memory. The CPU, and any of these components that are in separate chips, are usually all located on the same printed circuit board, known as the motherboard. This in turn is located in the system unit (sometimes incorrectly referred to as the "CPU").
A parallel computer has several CPUs which may share other resources such as memory and peripherals.
The term "processor" has to some extent replaced "CPU", though RAM and ROM are not logically part of the processor.
List of processors.
(2007-04-02)
Copyright © 2008, Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.