Latency or latent may refer to:
Science and technology
Latent heat, energy released or absorbed, by a body or a thermodynamic system, during a constant-temperature process Latent variable, a variable that is not directly observed but inferred in statistics
Biology and medicine
Latency period or latent period, the time between development of a disease or exposure to a pathogen, chemical, or radiation and when symptoms first become apparent (e.g. latent tumor) or when the disease becomes infectious (e.g. infectious disease) Latent homosexuality, a term proposed by Sigmund Freud Sleep onset latency, the time it takes a person to fall asleep Virus latency, the ability of a virus to remain dormant
Engineering
Latency (engineering), a measure of the time delay experienced by a system
Latency (audio), the delay between the moment an audio signal is triggered and the moment it is produced or received CAS latency, computer memory latency Network latency or network delay, a measure of the time delay required for information to travel across a network Rotational latency, the delay waiting for the rotation of the disk to bring the required disk sector under the read-write head Mechanical latency
Other uses
Latency stage, a term coined by Sigmund Freud for a stage in a child's psychosexual development Latent Recordings, an independent Canadian record label Nuclear latency, the condition of a country capable of developing nuclear weapons but not yet possessing them