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Glite Dictionary
man-month

man-month

6.5
The work one person does in one month used to plan a project
  • noun
  • /mæn mʌnθ/
  • Specialized
translation icon : mes-hombre
  • The project was estimated to require fifty man-months of work.

Examples

  • We completed the software upgrade two man-months ahead of schedule.

  • We estimated the work at five man-months.

  • Accurately calculating man-months is essential for project budgeting.

  • The project will take ten man-months to complete.

  • The team estimated the project would require five man-months of work to complete.

  • To finish the report, they determined it would take two man-months from one dedicated staff member.

  • The manager suggested that allocating twelve man-months could ensure the project stayed on schedule.

How Much Work

man-month
  • Specialized
6.5
week
∞ 1.0
person hour
  • Specialized
1 3.6

Surface Forms

man-month singular
man-months plural

Morphology

man-month = man + month (transparent) = man + month

The compound directly combines 'man' and 'month' to denote the amount of work one person performs in one month, a meaning easily inferred from its parts.

Etymology

Man-month is simply the compound of man and month, meaning 'one person's work in a month', and it is like the related term man-hour but for a month. So, a man-month is used to estimate how much work a project needs.