software

noun

soft·​ware ˈsȯft-ˌwer 

: something used or associated with and usually contrasted with hardware: such as

a

: programs for a computer

accounting software

b

dated : the entire set of programs, procedures, and related documentation associated with a mechanical or electronic system and especially a computer system

c

: materials for use with audiovisual equipment

… television programs, music, and movies are now called software, by the way …

—Robert Bixby

Examples of software in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This article was generated by the Bay Area Home Report Bot, software that analyzes home sales or other data and creates an article based on a template created by humans. —Bay Area Home Report, Mercury News, 7 Jan. 2026

What's especially neat is how the Smart Play system doesn't involve any screens – neither in the hardware sense like a display on the bricks, nor in the software sense of having to program or load up content for the Bricks. —New Atlas, 6 Jan. 2026

Siemens said the software enables organizations to visualize the effects of everything from engineering changes to environmental conditions, using real-time data as a backbone for industrial AI and simulation at scale. —Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 6 Jan. 2026

The software Kentucky uses for its Mobile ID app is also used in 18 other states. —Leo Bertucci, Louisville Courier Journal, 6 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1958, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for software

• abwehr
• affair
• affaire
• airfare
• altair
• armchair
• aware
• beware
• bugbear
• carfare
• childcare
• compare

Kids Definition

software

noun

soft·​ware ˈsȯf-ˌtwa(ə)r 

-ˌtwe(ə)r

: the programs and related information used by a computer