playlist

American  

[pley-list] / ˈpleɪˌlɪst /

noun

playlists plural

1. a list of the recordings to be played on the radio during a particular program or time period, often including their sequence, duration, etc.

2. Digital Technology. an electronic file containing a list of audio or video files that can be played back on a media player sequentially or in random order.

   to create a playlist of your favorite songs.

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playlist British  

/ ˈpleɪˌlɪst /

noun

1. a list of records chosen for playing, as on a radio station

2. a list of tracks to be played in a particular order on an MP3 player or CD player

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verb

1. (tr) to put (a song or record) on a playlist

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• playlists
  plural

Etymology

Origin of playlist

First recorded in 1960–65; play + list ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

playlist playlists

Then he showed me a Spotify playlist he’d made for me of his favorite electronic music, because he knows I like EDM.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026

“Ravishing,” the opening track of Tyler’s 1986 album “Secret Dreams and Forbidden Fire,” holds a crucial spot on my summer playlist after a recent retrospective.

From Salon ● Jul. 9, 2026

The 811-song playlist that Patricia made for her Sunset Cocktails party?

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 7, 2026

The original fit a jazz-radio playlist; this one might rapturously fill a concert hall.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026

I didn’t submit a single entry to our improvised playlist, because I wasn’t old enough to have an iPod and I only listened to Disney soundtracks at the time, besides.

From "Better Nate Than Ever" by Tim Federle

They capitalize on nostalgia and the ubiquity of streaming playlists that compile older songs, and increase the catalogs’ value with biographical films and ad placements.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

Gradually, it becomes clear that the game DJ and host are also getting ready, running through their playlists and patter.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026

Spotify has, at various points, been accused of commissioning and promoting lower-cost music for background-style playlists – claims it denies.

From BBC ● Apr. 27, 2026

And yet: The sheer number of YouTube and Spotify playlists of TV themes old and new suggests that our primal pop-culture brains long for some of the familiarity and comfort they once reliably triggered.

From Salon ● Apr. 25, 2026

“I miss my playlists I spent two days making and posting to UConnect.”

From "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray