What does synchronize mean?
To synchronize means to make separate actions, processes, or systems happen at the same time or work in precise coordination. A team might synchronize its movements, a device might synchronize its clock with a server, and a recording system might synchronize sound with video. The word suggests more than a simple coincidence: it usually implies deliberate coordination so that separate parts align accurately and consistently. It comes from Greek roots meaning “together” and “time,” and its modern uses extend from clocks and machinery to communications, data, and collaborative activity. Synchronize is especially useful when describing systems that must operate as a coordinated whole, whether in engineering, science, transport, performance, or everyday planning.
To make two or more actions, processes, or systems occur at the same time or operate in precise coordination.
"The controller synchronizes the cameras so that they capture the same moment."
Often used with clocks, movements, signals, data, equipment, and human activities. British English also uses synchronise.
To happen at the same time, or to coincide in time with another event.
"The launch was synchronized with a nationwide broadcast."
This intransitive use is less common than the transitive sense but is standard in formal and technical writing.
From clocks to satellites, synchronizing keeps separate systems working as one — a surprisingly old idea with modern consequences.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does synchronize come from?
The word derives from Greek synchronos, meaning “simultaneous” or “happening at the same time,” built from syn- (“together”) and chronos (“time”). It entered English in the 17th century in the form synchronise, originally referring to things occurring simultaneously. Later usage developed the modern transitive sense of arranging separate processes or activities to occur together or in agreement, especially with clocks, mechanisms, and, later, electronic systems.
Related word forms
How synchronize is actually used
The word is commonly used in technical, scientific, and organizational contexts. British English often uses the spelling synchronise, while American English uses synchronize.
Easily confused with synchronize
Synchronize is a verb describing the act of making events or processes simultaneous, whereas synchronous is an adjective describing something that occurs at the same time or is coordinated.
Synchronize is the standard spelling of the verb in both British and American English; synchronise is the British variant.