a chip containing the logical elements for performing calculations, carrying out stored instructions, etc.: used as the central processing unit of a microcomputer
Origin of microprocessor
micro- + processormicroprocessor
mi·cro·proc·es·sorWebster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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microprocessor
noun
An integrated circuit that contains a major processing unit of a computer on a single chip, such as the central processor or the graphics processor.
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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An integrated circuit that contains a processor, such as a central processing unit.
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English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
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microprocessor - Computer Definition
An integrated circuit contained on a single silicon chip, a microprocessor contains the arithmetic logic unit, control unit, internal memory registers, and other vital circuitry of a computer's central processing unit (CPU). Microprocessor commonly is used interchangeably with CPU and processor. See also CPU.
Webster's New World Telecom Dictionary Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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A central processing unit (CPU) contained within a single chip (integrated circuit). The term originated in the 1970s when processors were first miniaturized. Today, all CPUs are microprocessors, and server, desktop, laptop, smartphone and tablet microprocessors have more than one processing unit (see dual core and multicore). The term is often abbreviated MPU for "microprocessor unit" or just MP, the latter also spelled with the Greek µ symbol for micro or the letter "u" as an alternate (µP or uP). From 8-Bit to 64-Bit The earliest microprocessors were created by Texas Instruments, Intel and Scotland-based Pico Electronics, but who was really first has been debated. First-generation 8-bit microprocessor families were Intel's 8080, Zilog's Z80, Motorola's 6800 and Rockwell's 6502. Today, the 32-bit and 64-bit microprocessors found in workstations and servers are x86, POWER and SPARC, while ARM leads the mobile market. The chips used in toys, appliances, vehicles and myriad other products are 8-, 16- and 32-bit microcontrollers, which include the microprocessor (see microcontroller). All together billions of microprocessors are made and shipped each year. See chip, embedded system, process technology, 16-bit computing, 32-bit computing and 64-bit computing.
The 386 Microprocessor
No technology is more incredible than the microprocessor. This older 386 chip contains a mere 275,000 transistors, and some slight detail can be seen. Contemporary chips at this magnification level show up only as a sea of gray. See chip. (Image courtesy of Intel Corporation.)
From 2K to Four Billion
This is a sampling of the number of transistors on a chip. It is not a comparison as many brands have similar transistor counts.
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