serial

[seer-ee-uhl]

noun

1. anything published, broadcast, etc., in short installments at regular intervals, as a novel appearing in successive issues of a magazine.

2. Library Science.,  a publication in any medium issued in successive parts bearing numerical or chronological designation and intended to be continued indefinitely.

adjective

1. published in installments or successive parts.

   a serial story.

2. pertaining to such publication.

3. pertaining to, arranged in, or consisting of a series.

4. occurring in a series rather than simultaneously.

   serial marriage; serial murders.

5. effecting or producing a series of similar actions.

   The police think a serial killer is responsible for five homicides in this city last month.

6. Computers.

   1. of or relating to the apparent or actual performance of data-processing operations one at a time (parallel ).

   2. of or relating to the transmission or processing of each part of a whole in sequence, as each bit of a byte or each byte of a computer word (parallel ).

7. Music.,  of, relating to, or composed in serial technique.

serial

/ ˈsɪərɪəl /

noun

1. a novel, play, etc, presented in separate instalments at regular intervals

2. a publication, usually regularly issued and consecutively numbered

adjective

1. of, relating to, or resembling a series

2. published or presented as a serial

3. of or relating to such publication or presentation

4. computing of or operating on items of information, instructions, etc, in the order in which they occur Compare parallel

5. of, relating to, or using the techniques of serialism

6. logic maths (of a relation) connected, transitive, and asymmetric, thereby imposing an order on all the members of the domain, as less than on the natural numbers See also ordering

Other Word Forms

• serially adverb
• nonserial noun
• nonserially adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of serial¹

From the New Latin word seriālis, dating back to 1835–45. See series, -al ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of serial¹

C19: from New Latin seriālis, from Latin seriēs _series

Example Sentences

Some of the comics on the Riyadh bill would perform a private show in a serial killer’s dungeon for the right amount of money — Schulz, I’m looking at you.

From Salon

Presented with Thomas Harris’ bestselling novel “The Silence of the Lambs,” most Hollywood directors would have been primarily enticed by the lurid appeal of its serial killers, Hannibal “The Cannibal” Lecter and “Buffalo Bill.”

From Los Angeles Times

DNA evidence has identified Robert Eugene Brashers, a deceased serial killer, as the perpetrator.

From Salon

In Season 2, Banda primarily appears in the Jack of Hearts game in the prison where one person recognizes him as a serial killer who preyed on women in the real world.

From Salon

She also wrote “Behold the Monster: Facing America’s Most Prolific Serial Killer,” a look inside the mind of serial killer Samuel Little.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• sequential