Synchronized

Definitions

1. In Java, a keyword that acquires an intrinsic monitor lock on an object (or class) before executing a block or method, ensuring that only one thread at a time can enter any synchronized region guarded by the same lock. Broadly, it describes any resource protected by mutual exclusion.

   In plain English: A way to mark code so that only one thread can run it at a time, preventing data corruption but potentially slowing things down.

   Example: "Making the method synchronized fixed the race condition but tanked throughput — we need a finer-grained lock."

Related Terms

• Actor
• Annotation
• Read Lock
• Read-Write Lock
• ReadWriteLock
• Runnable
• Spin Lock
• Write Lock