GIF

or gif

[jif or, sometimes, gif]Computers.

noun

a set of standards and file format for storage of digital color images and short animations.

a file or image stored in this format.

verb (used with object), GIFFed or giffed, GIFF·ing or gif·fing.

to create a static or animated GIF from (an image or set of images): She GIFFed her favorite actor having a good laugh and posted it on her blog.

Origin of GIF

1985–90; g(raphic) i(nterchange) f(ormat)

Pronunciation note

It is understandable that computer users who encounter this acronym for the first time might well assume that since the “G” stands for “graphic,” gif should similarly be pronounced with an initial hard g, as in go and give. However, the inventor of the format, Steve Wilhite, has insisted from its introduction at a computer conference in the late 1980s that the pronunciation is [jif] /dʒɪf/, with an initial soft g, as in gelatin and giant. That pronunciation is even part of the official specifications for the format and is the one used by many computer gurus, but both pronunciations are commonly in use.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for gif

Contemporary Examples of gif

GIF tributes on Buzzfeed and the like, you begin embracing that TV character you spent so long trying to shake.
'Boy Meets World' Star Danielle Fishel Is OK with Being Topanga Forever
Kevin Fallon
September 11, 2014
A gif of a civilian cargo plane crashing near Kabul, Afghanistan.
Welcome to MorbidReality, A Subreddit Featuring Some of the Most Disturbing Content on the Internet
Gideon Resnick
February 3, 2014
The joke going around was that he was going to try to put a GIF on the front page.
New York Post Looks Thinner After News Corporation Split
David Freedlander
July 18, 2013
GIF of DiCaprio dancing in the Wolf of Wall Street trailer.
Leonardo DiCaprio’s ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ Dancing & More Baller .GIFs
Kevin Fallon
June 18, 2013
What about the ability to add NINE MIND-BLOWING SECONDS of audio to a still picture, or create a gif right there in the camera?
The World’s Most Sarcastic Product Review: Samsung Galaxy S4 vs. iPhone
Winston Ross
March 15, 2013

Historical Examples of gif

"We'll have to ask the driver about the roads first," said Gif.
The Rover Boys on Snowshoe Island
Edward Stratemeyer
"You made that race in record time, Jack," announced Gif Garrison.
The Rover Boys on Snowshoe Island
Edward Stratemeyer
But I alvays like the shady site of a pargain, and I shall only gif you four dimes.'
Despair's Last Journey
David Christie Murray
"It was up to them to keep to their side of the road," said Gif Garrison.
The Rover Boys on a Hunt
Arthur M. Winfield (Edward Stratemeyer)
A flock of wild ducks was circling about, and he pointed them out to Gif.
The Rover Boys on a Hunt
Arthur M. Winfield (Edward Stratemeyer)

British Dictionary definitions for gif

GIF

noun computing

a standard compressed file format used for pictures
a picture held in this format

Word Origin for GIF

C20: from g (raphic) i (nterchange) f (ormat)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for gif

1987, acronym from Graphics Interchange Format.