In plain language
It is a waiting line for tasks, so bursts of events are handled steadily instead of all at once.
Example
Incoming webhook events are placed in a queue, then processed five at a time to stay under an API rate limit.
Related terms
Batch Processing · Rate Limit · Webhook · Retry and Backoff
Common misconception
A queue does not guarantee each item is processed exactly once; most deliver at least once, so consumers must handle duplicates.
Implementation guidance
Acknowledge items only after processing, make consumers idempotent, cap concurrency, monitor queue depth, and route repeated failures to a review list.