AI engineering glossary · Data structures algorithms
What is priority queue?
Priority queue: A collection where each item has a priority and the item with the highest priority is removed next, regardless of insertion order. It is usually built on a heap and powers schedulers and shortest-path search.
Priority queue: an example
A hospital triage system always calls the most urgent patient next, even if a less urgent patient arrived earlier.
Related terms
More Data structures algorithms terms
Where you learn it
Priority queue is part of the AI Engineering Program, which teaches it with notes, a hands-on lab and an exam. The first lesson is free.