interface

noun in·ter·face \ ˈin-tər-ˌfās \

|Updated on: 7 Aug 2018

Examples: interface in a Sentence

Definition of interface

1 : a surface forming a common boundary of two bodies, spaces, or phases

an oil-water interface

2 a : the place at which independent and often unrelated systems meet and act on or communicate with each other

the man-machine interface

b : the means by which interaction or communication is achieved at an interface

—

interfacial

play \ˌin-tər-ˈfā-shəl\ adjective

See interface defined for English-language learners

See interface defined for kids

Examples of interface in a Sentence

the interface between engineering and science
The software has a user interface that's easy to operate.
We installed an interface between the computer and the typesetting machine.

Recent Examples of interface from the Web

From mattress-purchasing to travel-planning to dogwalker-hiring and everything in between, there always appears to be a novel site with an easy-to-use interface and a host of options to personalize the shopping experience.

— leah bhabha, Vogue, "These Cookware Companies Are Making It Easy to Shop for High-Quality Pots and Pans," 11 July 2018
Lost in the talk of user interfaces and customer segments and pricing strategies was an appropriate nod to context, political or economic.

— john benjamin, The New Republic, "Business Class," 14 May 2018
The software also serve as the interface between the cable/internet companies and wireless network operators.

— bob fernandez, Philly.com, "Comcast, Charter agree to 50-50 software partnership for mobile business," 7 May 2018
Garmin’s interface works pretty well but still feels rudimentary compared to the iPhone.

— aaron gulley, Outside Online, "Garmin Edge 1030 vs. the iPhone X," 29 June 2018
Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook has called it the platonic ideal of computer interfaces.

— reggie ugwu, New York Times, "At Snapchat, Redrawing the Bounds of Reality," 14 June 2018
His roles include chairman and chief executive at Tesla; chairman and chief executive of rocket-maker SpaceX; chief executive of Neuralink, a developer of brain-computer interfaces; and founder of Boring Co., a tunnel transportation company.

— russ mitchell, latimes.com, "Tesla turns back effort to remove Elon Musk from chairman seat; directors win new terms," 5 June 2018
Filmmaker Nicholas Weissman profiled the project with hopes that the many people who may be rebuilding or retrofitting homes in California — particularly in areas that are part of wildland-urban interface — will take note.

— Time, "The Lesson of How One California Home Survived Last Year's Historic Wildfires," 2 June 2018
His latest work is a 27-minute film called The Moment, which fittingly explores a dark future of brain-computer interfaces.

— laura yan, Popular Mechanics, "This Movie Will Change Depending on Your Brain Activity," 26 May 2018

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

First Known Use of interface

1882

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

Other Chemical Engineering Terms

alkali, cation, decant, hygroscopic, isotope, oxidize, slurry, solute, viscous

interface

verb

Definition of interface

interfaced; interfacing; interfaces

transitive verb

1 : to connect by means of an interface

interface a machine with a computer

2 : to serve as an interface for

intransitive verb

1 : to become interfaced

2 : to interact or coordinate harmoniously

See interface defined for English-language learners

Examples of interface in a Sentence

interface a machine with a computer
the point at which the two machines interface

Recent Examples of interface from the Web

Its ride-sharing platform could be used on its own or be tailored to interface with a partner, one person said.

— mark bergen and noah buhayar, latimes.com, "GM puts pieces in place for self-driving taxis in San Francisco," 3 July 2018
From infancy, citizens live every moment of their waking lives with a heads-up display laid over their vision, offering information, data, and ways to remotely interface with the physical world.

— bryan bishop, The Verge, "Netflix’s Anon is an augmented reality neo-noir nightmare," 4 May 2018
Autonomous-car industry analysts say the needs of disabled people are being discussed as designers figure out how users will interface with the cars, but there are many competing demands.

— jason dearen, The Christian Science Monitor, "Researchers develop autonomous vehicles to help the blind," 13 Apr. 2018
Reservation, warranty, and warehousing systems had to interface with services running on mainframes, some running software that was decades old.

— ian bogost, The Atlantic, "The Dot-Coms Were Better Than Facebook," 13 Apr. 2018
If everything the brain does to interact with the world involves muscles, why not use the motor system to more directly interface mind and machine?

— r. douglas fields, Scientific American, "Wristband Lets the Brain Control a Computer with a Thought and a Twitch," 27 Mar. 2018
Granted, there was some other tech in the case, specifically the parts that let those batteries interface with the device, but not some $660 worth.

— eric limer, Popular Mechanics, "Teardown of a $700 Battery Finds Staggeringly Little Inside," 22 Feb. 2016
Neurofeedback is used to train the brain and computer to interface with each other.

— r. douglas fields, Scientific American, "Wristband Lets the Brain Control a Computer with a Thought and a Twitch," 27 Mar. 2018
Speaking of goals, a special version of this watch will actually be worn by the referees at this year’s World Cup to interface with the goal-line technology.

— paul miller, The Verge, "World Cup referees will use Hublot’s new Wear OS watch to check for goals," 21 Mar. 2018

First Known Use of interface

1962

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

INTERFACE Defined for English Language Learners

interface

noun

Definition of interface for English Language Learners

: the place or area at which different things meet and communicate with or affect each other
: a system that is used for operating a computer : a system that controls the way information is shown to a computer user and the way the user is able to work with the computer
: an area or system through which one machine is connected to another machine