COBOL

American  

[koh-bawl] / ˈkoʊ bɔl /

noun

Computers.

1. a programming language particularly suited for writing programs to process large files of data, using a vocabulary of common English words, phrases, and sentences.

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COBOL British  

/ ˈkəʊˌbɒl /

noun

1. a high-level computer programming language designed for general commercial use

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COBOL Scientific  

/ kō′bôl′ /

1. A programming language developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s and used especially for business applications. It is closer to English than many other high-level languages, making it easier to learn.

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Etymology

Origin of COBOL

1955–60; co(mmon) b(usiness) - o(riented) l(anguage)

Example Sentences

The agency still uses technology dating back more than a half-century, including devices running a programming language, COBOL, that few coders still know.

From New York Times

The system runs on COBOL, an antiquated programming language few coders still know.

From Washington Post

Some of its main computers still run on programming language that dates to the 1960s, called COBOL, the IRS has repeatedly told policymakers.

From Washington Post

The result, as one of my colleagues pointed out, is a keyboard that looks like it could sink a U-boat and only supports coding in COBOL.

From The Verge

If you actually look at the technologies that banks run on, we’re talking about COBOL, which is a computer language from the ’70s.

From The Verge