hysteresis

Coined by Sir James Alfred Ewing from Ancient Greek ὑστέρησις (hustérēsis, “shortcoming”), from ὑστερέω (husteréō, “I am late, fall short”), from ὕστερος (hústeros, “later”). [1]

hysteresis (countable and uncountable, plural hystereses)

1. A property of a system such that an output value is not a strict function of the corresponding input, but also incorporates some lag, delay, or history dependence, and in particular when the response for a decrease in the input variable is different from the response for an increase. For example, a thermostat with a nominal setpoint of 75° might switch the controlled heat source on when the temperature drops below 74°, and off when it rises above 76°.
2. Magnetic friction in dynamos, by which every reversal of magnetism in the iron causes dissipation of energy.