program

noun pro·gram \ ˈprō-ˌgram , -grəm \

Updated on: 15 Apr 2018

Definition of program

[Late Latin programma, from Greek]

: a public notice

2 a : a brief usually printed outline of the order to be followed, of the features to be presented, and the persons participating (as in a public performance)

b : the performance of a program; especially : a performance broadcast on radio or television

3 : a plan or system under which action may be taken toward a goal

4 : curriculum

5 : prospectus, syllabus

6 a : a sequence of coded instructions that can be inserted into a mechanism (such as a computer)

b dated : a complete plan for solving a problem by the use of a mechanism (such as a computer) that includes both instructions to be inserted into the mechanism and plans for human activities such as interpreting output

c : a sequence of coded instructions (such as genes or behavioral responses) that is part of an organism

See program defined for English-language learners

See program defined for kids

Examples of program in a Sentence

a program of regular dental checkups
the program will tell us the scheduled order of musical numbers

Recent Examples of program from the Web

The number of girls in the program increases each year.

— quoron walker, Courant Community, "Local Youth Wrestling Program Has Successful Season," 11 Apr. 2018
In addition, 79 Kyle Field suites so far have been reserved for the game, compared to 13 for last year’s game, when interest in the program had waned under sixth-year coach Kevin Sumlin.

— brent zwerneman, Houston Chronicle, "Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M set for annual spring game," 11 Apr. 2018
The Arizona Supreme Court ruled that young immigrants in the program started by former President Barack Obama are not eligible for lower in-state college tuition.

— CBS News, "Arizona court rules DACA students not eligible for lower in-state tuition," 10 Apr. 2018
Her greetings to every guest, as always, were as warm as her support for company members, so particularly lauded later in the program.

— leah garchik, San Francisco Chronicle, "Carey Perloff’s radiant good-bye gala at ACT," 10 Apr. 2018
Rather than require membership in a program, as companies like Shipt do, Walmart simply charges a flat fee of $9.95 for delivery.

— phil wahba, Fortune, "Walmart Recruits Postmates To Help Grocery Delivery Push," 10 Apr. 2018
In Minnesota’s reinsurance program, health insurers are eligible for reimbursements from the state for claims between $50,000 and $250,000.

— michael olive, The Christian Science Monitor, "States adopt 'reinsurance pools' to keep premiums low," 10 Apr. 2018
The Arizona Supreme Court ruled that young immigrants in the program started by former President Barack Obama are not eligible for lower in-state college tuition.

— Washington Post, "Arizona court rejects lower in-state tuition for immigrants," 10 Apr. 2018
Other residents questioned whether Temple would do a good job running an early childhood center and how involved largely untrained students would be in the programs.

— julia terruso, Philly.com, "Temple neighbors balk at community center 'bribe' in football stadium feud," 9 Apr. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of program

French programme agenda, public notice, from Greek programma, from prographein to write before, from pro- before + graphein to write — more at carve

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1633

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

program Synonyms

Synonyms

arrangement, blueprint, design, game, game plan, ground plan, master plan, plan, project, scheme, strategy, system;

Related Words

collusion, conspiracy, plot;

contrivance, device, gambit, maneuver, ruse, stratagem, subterfuge, trick;

counterplan, counterstrategy;

means, tactic, technique, way;

procedure, protocol;

conception, idea, projet, proposal, specific(s), specification(s);

aim, intent, intention, purpose;

diagram, formula, layout, map, pattern, platform, policy, recipe, setup;

Other Broadcasting Terms

continuity, dissolve, fade, feed, remote, residual, spike, wipe

program

verb pro·gram \ ˈprō-ˌgram , -grəm \

variants: or less commonly programme

Definition of program

programmed or programed; programming or programing

transitive verb

1 a : to arrange or furnish a program of or for : bill

b : to enter in a program

2 : to work out a sequence of operations to be performed by (a mechanism, such as a computer) : to provide with a program

3 a : to insert a program for (a particular action) into or as if into a mechanism (such as a computer)

b : to control by or as if by a program

c (1) : to code in an organism's program

(2) : to provide with a biological program

cells programmed to synthesize hemoglobin

4 : to predetermine the thinking, behavior, or operations of as if by computer programming

children are programmed into violence
—Lisa A. Richette

—

programmability

play \(ˌ)prō-ˌgra-mə-ˈbi-lə-tē\ noun

—

programmable

play \ˈprō-ˌgra-mə-bəl\ adjective or noun

See program defined for English-language learners

Examples of program in a Sentence

He programmed the computer to calculate his monthly expenses and earnings.
She is learning how to program in school.
Can you help me program my cell phone?

Recent Examples of program from the Web

Its goals are to program the new Cultural Center at the Opera House making it a regional destination, maintain the Havre de Grace Arts and Entertainment District’s mission and umbrella the Arts by the Bay Gallery.

— erika butler, The Aegis, "Havre de Grace expands district for the love of the arts," 12 Apr. 2018
Five years after taking part in Black Girls Code, Taylor, now 18, is in her first year of a computer science degree at California State University and is focused on a career programming computer games.

— lee mannion, The Christian Science Monitor, "Black Girls Code seeks to build diversity in tech," 28 Mar. 2018
Call poison control Roland suggests people program the hotline number programmed in their phones as a precaution.

— lauren castle, azcentral, "What to remember to prevent poisonings, and who to call if you need help," 20 Mar. 2018
Boston Lyric Opera, clearly aiming to stake a flag for opera in the broader cultural zeitgeist, has programmed two of next season’s four operas around the theme of violence against women.

— jeremy eichler, BostonGlobe.com, "BLO to stage ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ and operas by Machover, Britten, Rossini," 7 Mar. 2018
So the plan is to try something new: A robot that has been programmed to flip hamburgers all day long.

— jefferson graham, USA TODAY, "Flippy the robot is now cooking up burgers near L.A., and that's just the start," 5 Mar. 2018
The team then made massive photomosaics of some of the islands and programmed a neural network to count their nesting sites.

— National Geographic, "Hidden Penguin Mega-Colonies Discovered in Antarctica," 2 Mar. 2018
This concept came about and was actually originally programmed for 2019.

— jonathan evans, Esquire, "Lacoste's Latest Show Was an Excellent Mix of Environmental Conservation and Sartorial Innovation," 28 Feb. 2018
The toy works with an app that allows parents to program words to the device.

— PEOPLE.com, "Dad Invents Toy That Teaches Braille to His 2-Year-Old Daughter Who Is Going Blind," 5 Feb. 2018

First Known Use of program

1846

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

Other Computer-Related Terms

adware, flash, kludge, phishing, recursive, router

PROGRAM Defined for English Language Learners

program

noun

Definition of program for English Language Learners

: a plan of things that are done in order to achieve a specific result
: a set of instructions that tell a computer what to do
: a thin book or a piece of paper that gives information about a concert, play, sports game, etc.

program

verb

Definition of program for English Language Learners

: to give (a computer) a set of instructions to perform a particular action : to create a program for (a computer)
: to give (a machine) a set of instructions to perform a particular action
: to make (a person or animal) behave or think in a particular way

PROGRAM Defined for Kids

program

noun pro·gram \ ˈprō-ˌgram , -grəm \

Definition of program for Students

1 : a brief statement or written outline (as of a concert, play, ceremony, or religious service)

2 : performance 2

a television program

3 : a plan of action

… this little town had the most successful school lunch program in the state.
—Andrew Clements, Frindle

4 : a set of step-by-step instructions that tell a computer to do something with data

program

verb

Definition of program for Students

programmed \ˈprō-ˌgramd, -grəmd\; programming

: to give (a computer) a set of instructions : provide with a program

Medical Dictionary

program

noun pro·gram

variants: or chiefly British programme play \ˈprō-ˌgram, -grəm\

medical Definition of program

: a sequence of coded instructions (as genes or behavioral responses) that is part of an organism

program

transitive verb

variants: or chiefly British programme

medical Definition of program

programmed or programed; programming or programing

1 : to code in an organism's program

2 : to provide with a biological program

cells programmed to synthesize hemoglobin

Learn More about program

See words that rhyme with program Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for program Spanish Central: Translation of program Nglish: Translation of program for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of program for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up program? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

program

Definition of program

Examples of program in a Sentence

Recent Examples of program from the Web

Origin and Etymology of program

program Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

Other Broadcasting Terms

program

Definition of program

programmability

programmable

Examples of program in a Sentence

Recent Examples of program from the Web

First Known Use of program

Other Computer-Related Terms

Phrases Related to PROGRAM

Related Phrases

PROGRAM Defined for English Language Learners

program

Definition of program for English Language Learners

program

Definition of program for English Language Learners

PROGRAM Defined for Kids

program

Definition of program for Students

program

Definition of program for Students

Medical Dictionary

program

medical Definition of program

program

medical Definition of program

Learn More about program

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

All the Hits

The Fossil Encased in "Case In Point"

Trending: 'Venom' Trailer Drives Searches for 'Symbiote'

Odd Habits and Quirks Quiz

2017 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes