downtime

American  

[doun-tahym] / ˈdaʊnˌtaɪm /

noun

1. a time times during a regular working period when an employee is not actively productive.

2. an interval during which a machine is not productive, as during repair, malfunction, maintenance.

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downtime British  

/ ˈdaʊnˌtaɪm /

noun

1. commerce time during which a machine or plant is not working because it is incapable of production, as when under repair: the term is sometimes used to include all nonproductive time Compare idle time

2. informal time spent not working; spare time

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Etymology

Origin of downtime

First recorded in 1925–30; down ¹ + time

Example Sentences

But those payoffs only partially cover the financial hit, and don’t cover factory downtime while suppliers seek new business and retool plants.

From The Wall Street Journal

"If it's raining outside and we're all tired and we need to rest, for that downtime we'll watch some TV," he adds.

From BBC

While Woody wears goggles when he is working, he also has uniform-free downtime to be the puppy he still is.

From BBC

The Navy acknowledged there had been some issues, citing the vessel's leadership as saying "clog incidents are addressed promptly by trained damage control and engineering personnel, with minimal downtime".

From BBC

The Navy acknowledged the reports of toilet problems in a statement last month, but cited ship leadership as saying that "clog incidents are addressed promptly by trained damage control and engineering personnel, with minimal downtime."

From Barron's

Related Words

• free time
• spare time