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• log
  log

  noun

  a portion or length of the trunk or of a large limb of a felled tree.
• log-
  log-

  variant of logo- before a vowel.
• -log
  -log

  variant of -logue.
• log.
  log.

  abbreviation

  logic.

log

¹ American  

[lawg, log] / lɔg, lɒg /

noun

1. a portion or length of the trunk or of a large limb of a felled tree.

   Put another log on the fire.

   We dragged logs from the forest and lashed them together to make a raft.

2. something resembling a log, as in shape or weight.

   Mix the softened butter and sage together, then put it on wax paper and roll it into a log.

3. any of various records, made in rough or finished form, concerning a trip made by a ship or aircraft and dealing with particulars of navigation, weather, engine performance, discipline, and other pertinent details; logbook.

4. Nautical. any of various devices for determining the speed of a ship, such as a chip log or patent log.

5. Movies. an account describing or denoting each shot as it is taken, written down during production and referred to in editing the film.

6. a record of a machine's operation, maintenance, etc..

   The log shows the date of each inspection of the roller coaster, any problems noticed, and all repairs made.

   If using the photocopier for personal documents, please write your initials and the number of pages in the log.

7. Also called well log. a record kept during the drilling of a well, especially of the geological formations penetrated.

8. Computers. any of various chronological records made concerning the use of a computer system, the changes made to data, etc.

9. Radio and Television. a written account of everything transmitted by a station or network.

10. Also called log of wood. Australian Slang. a lazy, dull-witted person; fool.

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verb (used with object)

• logs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• logged,
  past participle,  past
• logging
  present participle

1. to cut (trees) into logs.

   The villagers logged pine trees for fuel.

2. to cut down the trees or timber on (land).

   We logged the entire area in a week.

3. to enter in a logbook or record; keep a record of.

   While at camp I logged each day’s events in a journal.

4. to make (a certain speed), as a ship or airplane.

   We are logging 18 knots.

5. to travel for (a certain distance or a certain amount of time), according to a record kept of one or more trips.

   We logged 30 miles the first day.

6. to amass (a certain amount of time, number of events, or the like) working in a particular field or engaging in a particular type of activity.

   She has logged 26 years of teaching experience at the college level.

   He logged 17 shows as a model before changing careers.

verb (used without object)

• logs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• logged,
  past participle,  past
• logging
  present participle

1. to cut down trees and remove them from the forest for timber.

   He logs for a living.

   The company has been logging in Oregon for decades.

verb phrase

1. log in

   1. Digital Technology. Also log on, sign on. to enter identifying data, such as a username or password, into a database, mobile device, or computer, especially a multiuser computer or a remote or networked system, so as to access and use it.

      Log in to start your work session. Log in to your account to pay your bill online.

   2. to enter or include any item of information or data in a record, account, etc..

      Once the day’s stats have been logged in, let the captain see the logbook.

2. log off / out to terminate a session.

log ² American  

[lawg, log] / lɔg, lɒg /

noun

1. Mathematics. logarithm.

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log- ³ American  

1. variant of logo- before a vowel.

   logarithm.

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-log ⁴ American  

1. variant of -logue.

   analog.

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log. ⁵ American  

abbreviation

1. logic.

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log ¹ British  

/ lɒɡ /

noun

1. short for logarithm

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-log ² British  

combining form

1. a US variant of -logue

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log ³ British  

/ lɒɡ /

noun

1. 1. a section of the trunk or a main branch of a tree, when stripped of branches

   2. (modifier) constructed out of logs

      a log cabin

2. 1. a detailed record of a voyage of a ship or aircraft

   2. a record of the hours flown by pilots and aircrews

   3. a book in which these records are made; logbook

3. a written record of information about transmissions kept by radio stations, amateur radio operators, etc

4. 1. a device consisting of a float with an attached line, formerly used to measure the speed of a ship See also chip log

   2. to determine a ship's speed with such a device

5. a claim for better pay and conditions presented by a trade union to an employer

6. without stirring or being disturbed (in the phrase sleep like a log )

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verb

1. (tr) to fell the trees of (a forest, area, etc) for timber

2. (tr) to saw logs from (trees)

3. (intr) to work at the felling of timber

4. (tr) to enter (a distance, event, etc) in a logbook or log

5. (tr) to record the punishment received by (a sailor) in a logbook

6. (tr) to travel (a specified distance or time) or move at (a specified speed)

log Scientific  

/ lôg /

1. A logarithm.

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log Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing log

• easy as pie (rolling off a log)
• like a bump on a log
• sleep like a log

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Usage

What does -log mean? The combining form -log is used like a suffix meaning “discourse,” either spoken or written. Discourse means "communication of thought by words." The form -log is often used in everyday and technical terms. The form -log comes from Greek -logos, meaning “word” or "discourse." To learn more about logos, you can read our entry on the English word logos here. What are variants of -log?In British English, -log is spelled with a terminal -ue, becoming -logue, as in analogue. Additional related forms include -logic and -logy. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use article on all three forms.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• loggish
  adjective
• unlogged
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• logging
  present
• logged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• log
  simple
• logs
  simple
• have logged
  perfect
• has logged
  perfect
• am logging
  progressive
• are logging
  progressive
• is logging
  progressive
• have been logging
  perfect progressive
• has been logging
  perfect progressive

Past

• logged
  simple
• had logged
  perfect
• was logging
  progressive
• were logging
  progressive
• had been logging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will log
  simple
• will have logged
  perfect
• will be logging
  progressive
• will have been logging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of log

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English logge, variant of lugge “pole, limb of tree”; compare obsolete logget “pole”; see lugsail

Explanation

A log is the trunk of a tree minus the branches: logging is cutting down trees. A log is also a written record of something, and logging is keeping such a record. The first type of log is a tree that's been cut down with the branches stripped. Think of a log cabin: it's made up of logs. Logging is when trees are cut down for lumber. The other type of log is some type of written record or list of messages. A ship captain keeps a log of notes on the ship's status and progress. When you make such a record, you're logging. Logging can be written or orally recorded.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

log log- log. logs logged logging

Harshey-Jones also pleaded guilty to a charge of corrupt or improper exercise of his police powers and privileges by looking up his own incident on the computer log.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

Roki Sasaki — continuing to log innings in relief in preparation for his postseason role — threw a perfect eighth.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2026

Offering an apparent window into the company’s marketing strategy, ZRON’s slide deck touts a tool that allegedly allows users to monitor screens, log keystrokes and execute commands on computers running the Windows operating system.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

Request your beneficiary designations in writing: Call or log in to every financial account, life-insurance policy and retirement plan.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026

Uncle placed a log on the fire and got to his feet.

From "Code Name Kingfisher" by Liz Kessler

He jerked open a log- and-barbed-wire gate that led into a pasture and motioned for me to walk through.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot

The only buildings here were tiny log- and-mortar cabins, replicas of the army’s shelters.

From "Maniac Magee" by Jerry Spinelli

Lancelot kicked the log- thoughtfully, one arm on the mantelpiece, looking into the ashy glow.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

Besides these edifices, Dr. Dunlop and Mr. Prior had each a good house, and there was the Priory, a large log- building, afterwards occupied by the superintendent.

From Twenty-Seven Years in Canada West The Experience of an Early Settler (Volume I) by Samuel Strickland

He keeps his log- book very accurately, pompously registers all the shipwrecks, and as these spectacles transport him with admiration, he is indignant to find that he alone is moved by them.

From The Lock and Key Library The most interesting stories of all nations: French novels by Julian Hawthorne

"You fill in the log. Clearly, they hadn't done it."

From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2025

"So the ninth time I went under and came up and grabbed a log. And that's what kept me going."

From Reuters ● Jan. 21, 2022

“I mean, that log. You know, his, whatever…we don’t even know if he’s a real lumberman or whether he’s just a guy. So, I’ll do a little digging on that and get back to you.’

From Seattle Times ● May 24, 2017

They were making a noise that sounded like a rusty saw in a hickory log.*

From Time Magazine Archive

“Why are you still walking? You should be sitting. I think you should sit down right now. Oh, look. A log. For sitting on.”

From "The Girl Who Drank the Moon" by Kelly Barnhill

OpenAI acknowledged in late August that its models had sometimes tried, unsuccessfully, to erase or modify their own activity logs during internal tests.

From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026

Now he logs 30,000 steps a day roaming the halls of a million-square-foot data center in the Virginia suburbs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026

An independent investigation found that the AI swarm found a way to secretly communicate and coordinated the unauthorized hack, editing and deleting its activity logs to avoid detection.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026

According to the chat logs, ZRONs sales representatives talk to clients across China’s northeastern, eastern and southern regions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

Then, as if the slow pace wasn’t difficult enough, the three friends came to a two hundred-foot stretch with no logs.

From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone

Lennar stock logged its largest decline since 2024 after a report questioned its relationship with land banking company Millrose.

From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026

Mills, a postgraduate student in art history, set her alarm for 8 a.m., and logged on early to the museum’s site.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026

The government says that in 2025 more than 1,000 serious disruptive passenger incidents were logged by airlines, including a mid-air brawl that resulted in a flight being diverted.

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026

Then he posted a sub-.800 OPS for the first time since his 2018 rookie season, when he logged just 72 plate appearances.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 27, 2026

Late one night in November 1996, while on a cardiology rotation at St. Thomas Hospital, in Nashville, Tennessee, he logged on to a hospital computer and went to a message board called techstocks.com.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

This does not include lands subject to significant extractive uses, like logging or mining, or disruptive recreation activities, like OHV off-road driving.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026

They audited the street, tracking down absent landlords, and logging what was empty and why.

From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026

"And protection must go beyond avoiding deforestation. Avoiding forest disturbances from wildfires or logging delivered the greatest benefits for forest biodiversity."

From Science Daily ● Sep. 21, 2026

The Nasdaq composite rose 2.3%, logging its third straight gain to close at a record high.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026

The cartilage in his nose was twisted—it’d been broken by the lash of a wayward logging cable in the winter of 1915.

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson

Related Words

• chunk
• piece
• timber
• wood