terms of service

plural noun

: the legal terms (see term entry 1 sense 4) that set forth the nature, scope, and limits of a service (such as one offered through a website or an app) and the rules that the service's users must agree to follow
… Twitter users' complaints alerted the company that three of his messages violated the terms of serviceJake Tapper
… most people have no idea what is signed away when they click "agree" to binding terms of service contracts—again and again on phones, laptops, tablets, watches, e-readers and televisions.The New York Times
abbreviation TOS

Examples of terms of service in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The terms of service of Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store both appear to forbid apps that allow sexualized images of people without their consent, the senators wrote. Kevin Collier, NBC news, 9 Jan. 2026 Content featuring the sexualization and exploitation of children is also banned on X under its current terms of service. Bloomberg, Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2026 Kalshi's terms of service forbid trading with non-public information. Bobby Allyn, NPR, 5 Jan. 2026 Until then, the only limits on their selections were Vimeo’s standard terms of service, which prohibit content that incites violence or qualifies as pornographic. Chris O'Falt, IndieWire, 22 Dec. 2025 See All Example Sentences for terms of service

Word History

First Known Use

1994, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of terms of service was in 1994

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Cite this Entry

“Terms of service.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/terms%20of%20service. Accessed 14 Jan. 2026.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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