metadata

[ met-uh-dey-tuh, ‐-dat-uh, ‐-dah-tuh ]

noun

, (usually used with a singular verb)

1. data that describes, annotates, or gives information about other data, including but not limited to tags in a programming code, information about a digital file's characteristics, or a library catalog showing the location and call number of books: In their surveillance operations, intelligence agencies were able to access such metadata as the phone numbers involved and duration of phone calls.

   Search engine spiders use content and HTML metadata to index websites.

   In their surveillance operations, intelligence agencies were able to access such metadata as the phone numbers involved and duration of phone calls.

metadata

plural noun

1. computing information that is held as a description of stored data

Word History and Origins

Origin of metadata¹

First recorded in 1965–70; meta- (in the sense “analyzing material at a higher level”) + data ( def )

Example Sentences

That was a failure of intelligence, and they had all the metadata in the world.

From The Daily Beast

When asked, “Is metadata retained after video files are destroyed?”

From The Daily Beast

The bit rates were poor, metadata inconsistent or nonexistent.

From The Daily Beast

First, the NSA will no longer itself hold the vast store of telephone metadata.

From The Daily Beast

Once the NSA has the metadata in its system, it retains it for five years, before destroying it on a rolling basis.

From The Daily Beast