Latency Period Definition & Meaning

American

British

Cultural

Etymology

Examples

latency period American

noun

1. Psychoanalysis. the stage of personality development, extending from about four or five years of age to the beginning of puberty, during which sexual urges appear to lie dormant.

2. Pathology. latent period.

latency period British

noun

1. psychoanal a period according to Freud, from the age of about five to puberty, when sexual interest is diminished

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 latency period Cultural

1. According to psychoanalysis, the period in a child's development, from about age four to about age twelve, during which sexual drives are sublimated (see sublimation). Psychoanalytic theory holds that all other stages of a child's development (the anal stage, the oral stage, the genital stage or the Oedipus complex stage, and puberty) are dominated by the gratification of primarily sexual drives. During the latency period, children generally identify with the parent of the same sex and play with other children of the same sex.

Etymology

Origin of latency period

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Because of the long latency period for those diseases, symptoms can take decades to develop.

From Seattle Times

However, with data indicating Omicron is less likely to cause severe illness than its previously dominant Delta cousin, it’s possible the latency period may be shorter this time.

From Los Angeles Times

There are three additional ways in which science could help open campuses safely: testing campus wastewater, batch testing and exploiting the latency period of the virus.

From New York Times

It is understood that this virus is difficult to contain because of intercontinental economic ties, the movement of people and the latency period before symptoms display.

From Washington Post

Those gaps included whether other native species were hosting the fungus, and its long latency period.

From The Guardian

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

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