format

American  

[fawr-mat] / ˈfɔr mæt /

noun

1. the shape and size of a book as determined by the number of times the original sheet has been folded to form the leaves.

2. the general physical appearance of a book, magazine, or newspaper, such as the typeface, binding, quality of paper, margins, etc.

3. the organization, plan, style, or type of something.

   The format of the show allowed for topical and controversial gags.

4. Computers. the arrangement of data for computer input or output, such as the number and size of fields in a record or the spacing and punctuation of information in a report.

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verb (used with object)

formatted, formatting

1. to plan or provide a format for.

   to format the annual telethon.

2. Computers.

   1. to set the format of (input or output).

      Some word-processing programs format output in a variety of ways.

   2. to prepare (a disk) for writing and reading.

verb (used without object)

formatted, formatting

1. to devise a format.

format British  

/ ˈfɔːmæt /

noun

1. the general appearance of a publication, including type style, paper, binding, etc

2. an approximate indication of the size of a publication as determined by the number of times the original sheet of paper is folded to make a leaf See also duodecimo quarto

3. style, plan, or arrangement, as of a television programme

4. computing

   1. the defined arrangement of data encoded in a file or for example on magnetic disk or CD-ROM, essential for the correct recording and recovery of data on different devices

   2. the arrangement of text on printed output or a display screen, or a coded description of such an arrangement

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verb

1. to arrange (a book, page, etc) into a specified format

format Scientific  

/ fôr′măt′ /

1. The arrangement of data for storage or display.

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1. To divide a disk into marked sectors so that it may store data.

2. To determine the arrangement of data for storage or display.

Other Word Forms

• formatter noun
• preformat verb (used with object)
• reformat verb

Etymology

Origin of format

First recorded in 1830–40; from French, from Latin (liber) fōrmātus “(book) shaped (in a specified way)”; formation ( def. )

Example Sentences

"I feel like, for most of my generation, the 'Chuck Norris doesn't x' meme format was really about all we knew about him," said Sam Smith, 25.

From BBC

However, one reviewer on the GoodReads website claimed the book appeared to be "written by ChatGPT", while another noted the "bizarre formatting, typos and repetitive turns of phrase".

From BBC

More details around the CBA, including player housing, expansion draft format and roster spots, will become clearer as the deal reaches ratification.

From Los Angeles Times

As someone who is not naturally tidy, I’ve tried on a number of spring-cleaning formats over the years.

From Salon

One of the format’s surprising strengths is that Annie always gets the last word.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• arrangement
• composition
• configuration
• form
• layout
• organization
• pattern
• plan
• scheme
• setup
• shape
• size
• style