compile

verb com·pile \ kəm-ˈpī(-ə)l \

|Updated on: 12 Jun 2018

Examples: compile in a Sentence

Definition of compile

compiled; compiling

transitive verb

1 : to compose out of materials from other documents

compile a statistical chart

2 : to collect and edit into a volume

compile a book of poems

3 : to build up gradually

compiled a record of four wins and two losses

4 : to run (something, such as a program) through a compiler

See compile defined for English-language learners

See compile defined for kids

Examples of compile in a Sentence

He compiled a book of poems.
She compiled a list of names.
They took the best submissions and compiled them in a single issue of the magazine.
We compiled our findings in the report.

Recent Examples of compile from the Web

Spending on research and sales as a percentage of revenue rose to 14% in 2017 for S&P 500 stocks, compared with 7% a decade ago, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

— bloomberg, latimes.com, "What's a stock worth? In the new economy, traditional accounting has its critics," 8 June 2018
Data compiled by Stinson show that since 2005, just 85 non-federal officers — cops, deputy sheriffs, state troopers, etc.

— mensah m. dean, Philly.com, "A year ago, a Philly cop fatally shot a fleeing man from behind. The cop was fired. Will charges be filed?," 7 June 2018
According to data compiled by the the Washington Post, more than 215,000 students in the U.S. have experienced gun violence at school since the Columbine High School massacre in 1999.

— Time, "Students at a Pennsylvania School Were Given Bulletproof Shields for Their Backbacks," 6 June 2018
America’s unique gun violence problem The US has nearly six times the gun homicide rate of Canada, more than seven times that of Sweden, and nearly 16 times that of Germany, according to United Nations data compiled by the Guardian.

— german lopez, Vox, "Betsy DeVos’s federal school safety commission won’t look at guns," 5 June 2018
According to data compiled by Bloomberg, all acquisitions involving British firms have soared to more than $275 billion so far this year, on track for a record high.

— andrew atkinson, Bloomberg.com, "Foreign Purchases of U.K. Firms Have Soared Since Brexit Vote," 5 June 2018
Bike-share ridership data compiled by the National Association of City Transportation Officials suggest these services are thriving: 35 million bike-share trips were taken in 2017, an increase of 25 percent from 2016.

— patrick sisson, Curbed, "Lyft plans to purchase leading U.S. bike-share operator," 1 June 2018
Institutional investors dumped more than 126 million GE shares during the three months ended in March, reversing three straight quarters of net purchases, according to regulatory filings data compiled by Bloomberg.

— BostonGlobe.com, "Investors dump GE shares," 17 May 2018
About 15% of Starbucks’ revenue came from its China and Asia Pacific markets — about $3.2 billion — in fiscal 2017, according to company data compiled by Bloomberg.

— Fortune, "Starbucks Has an Eye-Popping New China Plan: Open a Store Every 15 Hours For 4 Years," 16 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'compile.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of compile

Middle English, from Anglo-French compiler, from Latin compilare to plunder

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

compile Synonyms

Synonyms

anthologize, collect;

accumulate, amass, assemble, collate, gather, group;

COMPILE Defined for English Language Learners

compile

verb

Definition of compile for English Language Learners

: to create (a CD, book, list, etc.) by gathering things (such as songs or pieces of writing or information)
: to put together (various songs, pieces of writing, facts, etc.) in a publication or collection
computers : to change (computer programming instructions) into a form the computer can understand and use