Occurring or existing at different times; not synchronous or simultaneous.
From Greek hetero- (different) + chronos (time) + -ous (adjective suffix). A technical term used in biology and geology to describe asynchronous processes.
Plant flowers blooming on different schedules throughout the season is a heterochronous pattern that guarantees some plants will always be producing seeds, even if weather destroys early bloomers.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.