promptitude

1 9.5

Acting quickly without delay when action is needed

noun
/ˈprɒmptɪtjuːd/

: prontitud

Then we may act with promptitude and vigour.

Examples

Due to the team's promptitude, the event started on schedule without any delays.
My friend acted with the greatest promptitude and opened up an empty jam jar he had in his pocket, covering the movement with a deep bow as His Holiness left the elevator.

Blog text (29)
The project was completed with great promptitude, impressing everyone involved.
Her promptitude in responding to the emergency call saved valuable time.

Synonyms

immediacy

vspromptitude

16 5.8

A feeling that you are experiencing something directly right now

stresses quick action without the sense of personal directness

dispatch

vspromptitude

Formal

5 6.4

Quick and efficient work to finish a task

means acting quickly without emphasizing task efficiency

promptness

vspromptitude

4 3.5

Doing something quickly and at the expected time

emphasizes acting immediately rather than scheduled timeliness

immediateness

vspromptitude

8.1

Happening right away with nothing in between

refers to acting quickly generally rather than no intermediates

expeditiousness

vspromptitude

8.6

Quick and efficient action that gets work done

focuses on quick action without implying efficiency

Antonyms

delay

434 1.3

A time when something happens later than planned

slowness

5 1.1

A state when something moves or happens less quickly than usual

How Prompt

alacrity

4 8.4

promptitude

1 9.5

slowness

5 1.1

Surface Forms

promptitude singular

promptitudes plural

Morphology

promptitude = prompt (transparent) = prompt + itude

The noun is a regular formation from the adjective 'prompt' with the Latinate suffix '-itude', yielding 'the quality of being prompt', which is directly inferable from 'prompt'.

Etymology

Promptitude comes from the same root as prompt, which once meant 'ready' or 'at hand', like something you can bring out quickly; this gives a picture of being prepared and quick. So promptitude means the quality of acting quickly and without delay.