operating system

American  

[op-uh-rey-ting sis-tuhm] / ˈɒp ə reɪ tɪŋ ˌsɪs təm /

noun

Computers.

• operating systems
  plural

1. the collection of software that directs a computer's operations, controlling and scheduling the execution of other programs, and managing storage, input/output, and communication resources. OS

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operating system British  

noun

1. the set of software that controls the overall operation of a computer system, typically by performing such tasks as memory allocation, job scheduling, and input/output control

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operating system Scientific  

/ ŏp′ə-rā′tĭng /

1. Software designed to handle basic elements of computer operation, such as sending instructions to hardware devices like disk drives and computer screens, and allocating system resources such as memory to different software applications being run. Given uniformly designed operating systems that run on many different computers, developers of software do not need to concern themselves with these problems, and are provided with a standard platform for new programs.

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operating system Cultural  

1. The software that allows computer users to run applications with the hardware of a specific system. Microsoft® Windows® or Apple® Computer's OS are examples of operating systems.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• operating systems
  plural

Etymology

Origin of operating system

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

operating system

In the spring, the startup Telnyx, which produces infrastructure for real-time AI agents, or autonomous bots, was running 1,000 agents with a top Anthropic model and an open operating system.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026

Steve Jobs declared “thermonuclear war” on Google’s Android operating system in 2010, calling it a “stolen product.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026

The commission, the EU's antitrust regulator, had accused Google of abusing the popularity of its Android operating system to restrict competition.

From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026

Alphabet shares fell 0.5% after the European Union’s top court upheld a $4.69 billion fine against Google in connection with its Android operating system.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026

If the computer’s operating system was rewritten, computer scientists realized, the machine’s time could be shared; the computer could be trained to handle hundreds of tasks at the same time.

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell