What is "24/7" and where did this term come from?

Surely many people heard the phrase "24 for 7". What is the designation can say? Most often, 24/7 is a characteristic that relates to the time of operation of any organization or service. It literally means - round the clock, all week without days off, that is all seven days the organization or any service provides services to clients.

24/7 - What does this label say to customers?

Looking at the designation "24/7", it becomes clear that such an establishment serves customers around the clock without days off. Initially, in such a round-the-clock mode, only emergency services worked without days off: emergency, fire, police. Lately, commercial organizations have adopted such a schedule. Today, many supermarkets, pharmacies, entertainment centers provide services in a non-stop mode.

Quite often, different banks install self-service devices that can be used at any time of the night or day and on absolutely any day of the week. Such devices (ATMs and payment terminals) can be located in the bank and protected by a special compartment, in any shopping center operating in the same mode, or simply on the street.

Many online services or hotlines of some organizations (banks, psychological assistance centers) position such a schedule.

What is 24/7 and where did this designation come from? This is an English-language borrowing, a slang term, to which you can choose a series of synonyms: "constantly", "always", "around the clock," "all the time," "without interruption and days off," "without end."

Variants of designation

What is 24/7 is understandable, but there is one more similar notation. One of the options for specifying the schedule of work or service may be the following: 24/7/365. Here everything is just as simple: every day, all 24 hours, 7 days every week, all 365 days a year. This means that round the clock and year-round, without any breaks and days off, without interrupting even on holidays.