KB: meaning, definitions and examples
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kB
[ keɪ biː ]
computer memory
kB, or kilobyte, is a unit of digital information storage that is equivalent to 1024 bytes. It is commonly used to measure the size of small files, such as text documents or images. The kilobyte is often used in the context of computer memory and data transfer rates.
Synonyms
Examples of usage
- The document size is 20 kB.
- The image I uploaded is about 150 kB.
- This file requires 50 kB of memory.
- The average email text is around 5 kB.
Etymology
The term 'kilobyte' (kB) comes from the prefix 'kilo-' which is derived from the Greek word 'khilioi' meaning 'thousand.' In digital storage, 'kilo' has been used historically to denote 1024 bytes instead of 1000, due to the binary nature of computing where 1024 is 2 to the power of 10. The use of kilobytes became prevalent in the late 20th century as personal computers emerged and file sizes began to be categorized for the first time. As technology advanced and file sizes increased, measurements such as megabytes (MB) and gigabytes (GB) were introduced, but kilobytes remain a foundational unit in understanding digital data, especially for smaller files and memory capacities.