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jiffy - 7 dictionary results
jif⋅fy
[jif-ee] 
–noun, plural -fies. Informal.
| a very short time; moment: to get dressed in a jiffy. |
Also, jiff [jif] .
. Origin:
1770–80; orig. uncert.
1770–80; orig. uncert.
Synonyms:
instant, flash, second, trice.
instant, flash, second, trice.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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|
Link To jiffy
| jif·fy (jĭf'ē) n. pl. jif·fies Informal A short space of time; a moment. See Synonyms at moment. [Origin unknown.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Jiffy
Jif"fy\, n. [Perh. corrupt. fr. gliff.] [Written also giffy.] A moment; an instant; as, I will be ready in a jiffy. [Colloq.] --J. & H. Smith.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : jiffy
Spanish:
instante, santiamén,
German:
der Augenblick,
Japanese:
瞬間
jiffy
n.1. The duration of one tick of the system clock on your computer (see tick). Often one AC cycle time (1/60 second in the U.S. and Canada, 1/50 most other places), but more recently 1/100 sec has become common. "The swapper runs every 6 jiffies" means that the virtual memory management routine is executed once for every 6 ticks of the clock, or about ten times a second.
2. Confusingly, the term is sometimes also used for a 1-millisecond wall time interval.
3. Even more confusingly, physicists semi-jokingly use `jiffy' to mean the time required for light to travel one foot in a vacuum, which turns out to be close to one _nanosecond_.
4. Indeterminate time from a few seconds to forever. "I'll do it in a jiffy" means certainly not now and possibly never. This is a bit contrary to the more widespread use of the word. Oppose nano. See also Real Soon Now.
Jargon File 4.2.0
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jiffy
1785, "a moment, an instant," colloquial, origin unknown; said to be originally thieves' slang for "lightning."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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jiffy
1. The duration of one tick of the computer's system clock. Often one AC cycle time (1/60 second in the US and Canada, 1/50 most other places), but more recently 1/100 sec has become common.
2. Confusingly, the term is sometimes also used for a 1-millisecond wall time interval. Even more confusingly, physicists semi-jokingly use "jiffy" to mean the time required for light to travel one foot in a vacuum, which turns out to be close to one *nanosecond*.
[The Jargon File]
(2002-03-02)
The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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jiffy
see under in a flash.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 2009, Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
