bios

1 of 3

plural of bio

BIOS

2 of 3

noun

ˈbī-ˌōs 

plural BIOSes

computers

: a software element of a computer operating system that allows the CPU to communicate with connected input and output devices (such as a keyboard or a monitor)

Your PC contains several BIOSes—the video BIOS that interfaces your CPU and video card, for example—but the most fundamental is the system BIOS.

—Neil Randall

-biosis

3 of 3

noun combining form

plural -bioses

: mode of life

parabiosis

Examples of bios in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Some Framework Laptop 13 owners with last-gen AMD chips have reported that a recent BIOS update is bricking their laptops on both Windows and Linux. — Antonio G. Di Benedetto, The Verge, 20 Aug. 2026

Instead of targeting machines through the BIOS or master boot record, one such bootkit attacked Mac OS X systems by infecting the EFI, a package of firmware that started the boot process. — Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 17 June 2026

Asus has launched a beta BIOS for its Crosshair X870E motherboards that may be the first to support AMD EXPO Ultra Low Latency (ULL), VideoCardz reports. — Jon Martindale, PC Magazine, 10 June 2026

In one case, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt replied that, as a matter of policy, officials would not engage with reporters who list pronouns in their email bios. — Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Basic Input/Output System

Noun combining form

New Latin, from Greek biōsis, from bioun to live, from bios life — more at quick entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1980, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for bios

• cellobiose

Medical Definition

bios

noun

bi·​os ˈbī-ˌäs 

: a mixture of vitamins of the B complex essential for the optimum growth of some yeasts