What does paging mean?
Paging most commonly means contacting someone by pager, electronic beeper, or a similar device that displays a short message. The expression became especially familiar in hospitals and emergency services, where staff could summon a particular doctor or technician. Paging also has an important technical use in computing: an operating system moves data between physical memory and external storage, a process commonly called paging, when memory is insufficient or programs are not currently active. Less commonly, the word refers to dividing text or other material into pages. Its meaning depends on context, but the shared idea is movement or communication through units known as pages: a message sent to a pager, a block of data moved in computing, or a page of a publication. Although electronic pagers have been largely overtaken by mobile phones, paging remains standard vocabulary in healthcare, public safety, and computer systems.
The use of a pager or similar device to contact someone, or the computer process of transferring data between physical and virtual memory.
"Repeated paging of the specialist continued until the hospital confirmed that he had received the message."
In computing, paging is normally an uncountable process. The telecommunications sense is commonly used in institutional and emergency-response settings.
To contact someone by pager or similar electronic device; in computing, to transfer data between physical and virtual memory.
"The dispatcher paged two nearby crews before sending the first responders to the scene."
The telecommunications use is often informal or occupation-specific, while the computing use is standard technical terminology.
Paging is usually uncountable. The plural pagings is rare and occurs when separate acts of contacting someone are being counted.
"Repeated pagings to the on-call specialist were recorded in the hospital log."
Paging once meant summoning a doctor by electronic beeper; today it can also mean letting a computer juggle pages of memory.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does paging come from?
Paging was formed in English from page plus the suffix -ing. Its telecommunications sense developed alongside electronic pagers, especially during the mid-20th century, while its computing sense follows the broader metaphor of treating stored data as pages of memory. English page itself came through Old French from Latin pagina, the source of related forms such as pagination and paginate.
How paging is actually used
The telecommunications sense is somewhat dated for ordinary personal communication but remains common in hospitals, emergency services, and other institutional settings. The computing sense is standard technical terminology. The page-division sense is relatively uncommon.