a minimal delay

USAGE SUMMARY

"a minimal delay" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when referring to a situation in which a slight interruption or delay has occurred. For example, "We experienced a minimal delay in the production process due to a temporary shortage of materials."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Formal & Business

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

10 human-written examples

This rapid dilution minimized the differences in the gastric emptying rates resulting in a minimal delay of gastric emptying.

BMC Gastroenterology

This design is adapted to estimate the wavelet coherence between two EEG signals in a minimal delay in order to support real time applications.

Microprocessors and Microsystems

In this work, we model the above scenario as a minimal delay scheduling(MDS) problem, and prove it as an NP-complete problem.

Ad Hoc Networks

The best behaviour from the power system's perspective seems to occur when a very fast response is combined with a minimal delay.

Journal of Modern Power Systems and Clean Energy

A minimal delay in appointment was implemented to implicitly model the doctor-patient relationship (also see the methods section).

Health Care Management Science

For economic reasons, these resources cannot be offered immediately upon admission to emergency units of general hospitals, because a minimal delay is required for organization.

Critical Care

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

50 human-written examples

This is all modeled together by a varying minimal delay in the appointment for semi-urgent and elective patients.

Health Care Management Science

Interestingly, despite being more potent than methylprednisolone, dexamethasone showed a similar finite minimal delay to inhibition (∼40 min) and a similar rapid and transient stimulation, again supporting the existence of a rapid GR-mediated activation.

Endocrinology

He confirmed that the loss of a contractor would mean "minimal delay for about 70 houses at the tail end of the current batch of jobs".

BBC

The main change, which will probably be rubber-stamped with minimal delay, was a requirement for an environmental assessment as part of the process for licensing a space port.

BBC

Over the past decade, lengths of stay have fallen, multimorbid patients have become more common 5 and an increasingly complex range of diagnostic test and treatments are delivered routinely and with minimal delay (eg, a UK-wide primary coronary angioplasty).

BMJ Open

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When aiming for efficiency or speed, highlight that something occurs with "a minimal delay" to reassure your audience that any waiting period is insignificant.

Common error

Avoid using "a minimal delay" when the delay is actually significant. Be honest about the timeframe to maintain credibility.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "a minimal delay" functions as a noun phrase, typically used as an adverbial modifier to indicate the extent or duration of a postponement. Ludwig AI confirms its proper grammatical usage. The examples show the phrase indicating that an action or process occurs with little to no waiting time.

Expression frequency: Common

Frequent in

Science

70%

News & Media

20%

Formal & Business

10%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "a minimal delay" is grammatically sound and commonly used across various domains to denote a brief and insignificant postponement. Ludwig AI confirms its usability in written English. Analysis of various texts indicates the phrase is most prevalent in scientific contexts, followed by news and media. When aiming to communicate efficiency and speed, "a minimal delay" is a reliable choice, but it's important to use it accurately to avoid misleading your audience about the actual duration of the delay.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

a slight delay

Focuses on the small degree of the delay.

a negligible delay

Emphasizes that the delay is so small it can be ignored.

a short delay

Highlights the brief duration of the delay.

a brief interruption

Shifts the focus to the interruption aspect, rather than solely the delay.

a momentary pause

Suggests a very short break or hesitation.

a minor setback

Implies a slight impediment or obstacle causing a delay.

a trivial postponement

Highlights the insignificance of the delay and its rescheduling.

a fleeting holdup

Suggests a very brief and quickly resolved delay.

a fractional waiting period

Emphasizes that the waiting time is just a small portion of a longer period.

a fractional waiting time

Emphasizes that the waiting time is just a small fraction of a longer time.

FAQs

How can I use "a minimal delay" in a sentence?

You can use "a minimal delay" to indicate that something happens with very little waiting time or interruption. For example, "The new system ensures data transmission with "a minimal delay"."

What are some alternatives to "a minimal delay"?

Alternatives include "a slight delay", "a negligible delay", or "a short delay", depending on the specific nuance you want to convey.

Is it correct to say "minimal delay" without the article "a"?

While "minimal delay" can be used, using "a minimal delay" is generally more grammatically correct in many contexts, especially when referring to a specific instance of a delay.

What's the difference between "a minimal delay" and "no delay"?

"A minimal delay" indicates that there is some delay, but it's very small. "No delay" means there is absolutely no waiting time at all. They are not interchangeable.