procedure

noun

pro·ce·dure | \ prə-ˈsē-jər

Definition of procedure

1a : a particular way of accomplishing something or of acting

b : a step in a procedure

2a : a series of steps followed in a regular definite order legal procedure a surgical procedure

b : a set of instructions for a computer that has a name by which it can be called into action

3a : a traditional or established way of doing things

b : protocol sense 3a

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Examples of procedure in a Sentence

Installing a car battery is a simple procedure. What is the procedure for applying for a loan? New employees are taught the proper safety procedures. We must follow proper court procedure. An identity check is standard police procedure. the procedure for treating a burn The procedure will take two hours.

Recent Examples on the Web

Dana Rodriguez for Vox There’s something truly wonderful about referring to a procedure as specific as a bilateral mastectomy with a term as blandly ominous as top surgery. — Daniel Ortberg, Vox, "The best $6,250 I ever spent: top surgery," 18 Dec. 2018 Lindsay played Jaime Sommers, a professional tennis player who suffers a serious skydiving injury and is saved by a surgical procedure involving bionic implants. — Emma Dibdin, Country Living, "Who Is Lindsay Wagner? Meet The Star of Hallmark's 'Mingle All The Way'," 1 Dec. 2018 Such a complex procedure is needed because landing on Mars is no trivial task. — Loren Grush, The Verge, "NASA’s InSight lander has just six and a half minutes to land on Mars in one piece," 21 Nov. 2018 That's the promise of BB Glo, a microneedling procedure that inserts semi-permanent BB cream into the skin for coverage that lasts six months to a year. — Leah Prinzivalli, Allure, "What Is Semi-Permanent BB Cream, and Why Are People Getting It Microneedled Into Their Faces?," 9 Nov. 2018 And all these years later, my wife had to have a certain difficult operation for her cancer and her surgeon had been trained by somebody who had been trained by Joe using a procedure designed in VR and trained for in VR. — Eric Johnson, Recode, "If you can quit social media, but don’t, then you’re part of the problem, Jaron Lanier says," 27 July 2018 The patrols are also likely meant to remind the U.S. and the West in general that Russia remembers all of the old nuclear defense procedures from the bad old days of the Cold War and is ready to reactivate them if necessary. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "Russia Resumes Fighter Patrols Over the North Pole," 6 Feb. 2019 These exams include a number of procedures to assess both your eyesight and ocular health, including pupil dilation to see the optic nerve and retina and a thorough look at the front of your eye to look for things like cataracts or cornea scratches. — Carolyn L. Todd, SELF, "Exactly How Often You Really Need to See Different Kinds of Doctors," 17 Jan. 2019 According to the latest report from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, the use of minimally invasive cosmetic procedures grew by 186 percent between 2000 and 2017. — Elissa Strauss, Glamour, "The Changing Face of Beauty In America," 8 Oct. 2018

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

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Dictionary Entries near procedure

Procaviidae

procedural

procedural due process

Statistics for procedure

Last Updated

16 Mar 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for procedure

The first known use of procedure was circa 1577

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More Definitions for procedure

procedure

noun

English Language Learners Definition of procedure

: a series of actions that are done in a certain way or order : an established or accepted way of doing something

: a medical treatment or operation

See the full definition for procedure in the English Language Learners Dictionary

procedure

noun

pro·ce·dure | \ prə-ˈsē-jər

Kids Definition of procedure

: an action or series of actions for doing or accomplishing something What is the procedure for school enrollment?

procedure

noun

pro·ce·dure | \ prə-ˈsē-jər

Medical Definition of procedure

1 : a particular way of accomplishing something or of acting

2 : a step in a procedure especially : a series of steps followed in a regular definite order a surgical procedure a therapeutic procedure

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procedure

noun

pro·ce·dure | \ prə-ˈsē-jər

Legal Definition of procedure

1 : one or more methods or steps for the enforcement or administration of rights, duties, justice, or laws civil procedure police procedure — compare procedural law, substantive law

2 : a particular and especially established way of doing something a medical procedure security procedures