Engineering English
Publish-Subscribe
Software Engineering · Last updated: July 30, 2026 · How this entry was written
Definition: Publish-Subscribe is a messaging pattern where senders (publishers) broadcast messages without knowing the receivers (subscribers). Subscribers express interest in certain message types and receive only those messages.
Example in context
“We implemented a publish-subscribe model using Kafka to decouple the order service from the notification service.”
“Sipariş hizmetini bildirim hizmetinden ayırmak için Kafka kullanarak bir yayınla-abone ol modeli uyguladık.”
Where engineers use it
This pattern is fundamental in event-driven architectures where services react to events asynchronously. Engineers use it to build scalable, decoupled systems by letting services subscribe to topics or events without direct coupling.
Synonyms: pub/sub
Antonyms: point-to-point messaging
Practice: can you use “Publish-Subscribe” at work?
A colleague wants to send real-time updates to multiple services but is concerned about tight coupling. Explain how publish-subscribe can solve this.
Show a model answer
“Using publish-subscribe allows us to easily add new subscribers without changing the publisher.”
“Publish-Subscribe” in 21 languages
| English | Publish-Subscribe |
|---|---|
| Turkish | Yayınla-Abone Ol |
| French | Publication-abonnement |
| German | Veröffentlichen-Abonnieren |
| Spanish | Publicación-suscripción |
| Chinese | 发布-订阅 |
| Arabic | نشر-اشتراك |
| Portuguese | Publicação-assinatura |
| Russian | Издатель-подписчик |
| Japanese | パブリッシュ・サブスクライブ |
| Italian | Pubblicazione-sottoscrizione |
| Vietnamese | Xuất bản-đăng ký |
| Hindi | प्रकाशन-सदस्यता |
| Thai | เผยแพร่-สมัครรับข้อมูล |
| Indonesian | Publikasi-subskripsi |
| Korean | 발행-구독 |
| Bengali | প্রকাশ-সাবস্ক্রাইব |
| Dutch | Publiceren-abonneren |
| Swedish | Publicera-prenumerera |
| Finnish | Julkaise-tilaa |
| Ukrainian | Публікація-підписка |
Frequently asked questions
What does Publish-Subscribe mean in engineering?
Publish-Subscribe is a messaging pattern where senders (publishers) broadcast messages without knowing the receivers (subscribers). Subscribers express interest in certain message types and receive only those messages. In Software Engineering, the term carries a usage-frequency rating of 10/10 in the Engineering English library.
How do you pronounce Publish-Subscribe?
Publish-Subscribe is pronounced /ˈpʌblɪʃ səbˈskraɪb/ (IPA). The Engineering English app plays audio for the term and checks your pronunciation with speech recognition.
How is Publish-Subscribe used in a sentence?
Example from an engineering context: “We implemented a publish-subscribe model using Kafka to decouple the order service from the notification service.”
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