process

American  

[pros-es, proh-ses] / ˈprɒs ɛs, ˈproʊ sɛs /

noun

• processes
  plural

1. a systematic series of actions directed to some end.

   to devise a process for homogenizing milk.

   Synonyms:

   operation

2. a continuous action, operation, or series of changes taking place in a definite manner.

   the process of decay.

3. Law.

   1. the summons, mandate, or writ by which a defendant or thing is brought before court for litigation.

   2. the whole course of the proceedings in an action at law.

4. Photography. photomechanical or photoengraving methods collectively.

5. Biology, Anatomy. a natural outgrowth, projection, or appendage.

   a process of a bone.

6. the action of going forward or on.

7. the condition of being carried on.

8. course or lapse, as of time.

9. conk.

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verb (used with object)

• processes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• processed,
  past participle,  past
• processing
  present participle

1. to treat or prepare by some particular series of actions, as in manufacturing.

2. to handle (papers, records, etc.) by systematically organizing them, recording or making notations on them, following up with appropriate action, or the like.

   to process mail.

3. to mentally or emotionally deal with and make sense of.

   Cognitive therapy can be helpful in processing traumatic events and experiences.

   The disease affects the brain's ability to process bodily sensations.

4. to require (someone) to answer questionnaires, perform various tasks, and sometimes to undergo physical and aptitude classification examinations before the beginning or termination of a period of service.

   The army processes all personnel entering or leaving the service.

5. to convert (an agricultural commodity) into marketable form by a special series of steps, as pasteurization.

6. to institute a legal process against; prosecute.

7. to serve a process or summons on.

8. Computers. to carry out operations on (data or programs).

9. conk.

verb (used without object)

• processes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• processed,
  past participle,  past
• processing
  present participle

1. to deal with something mentally or emotionally and make sense of it.

   That movie completely blew me away—I’m still processing a week later.

2. to undergo administrative activities involved in hiring or firing personnel, organizing and reviewing information to make a decision, etc..

   The recruits are expected to process in four days.

   Your application for admission is still processing, but you should hear from us shortly.

adjective

1. prepared or modified by an artificial process or procedure.

   process cheese.

2. noting, pertaining to, or involving photomechanical or photoengraving methods.

   a process print.

3. Informal. of or relating to hair that has been conked, or chemically straightened.

4. Movies. created by or used in process cinematography.

   a moving background on a process screen.

process ¹ British  

/ ˈprəʊsɛs /

noun

1. a series of actions that produce a change or development

   the process of digestion

2. a method of doing or producing something

3. a forward movement

4. the course of time

5. 1. a summons, writ, etc, commanding a person to appear in court

   2. the whole proceedings in an action at law

6. a natural outgrowth or projection of a part, organ, or organism

7. a distinct subtask of a computer system which can be regarded as proceeding in parallel with other subtasks of the system

8. (modifier) relating to the general preparation of a printing forme or plate by the use, at some stage, of photography

9. (modifier) denoting a film, film scene, shot, etc, made by techniques that produce unusual optical effects

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verb

1. to subject to a routine procedure; handle

2. to treat or prepare by a special method, esp to treat (food) in order to preserve it

   to process cheese

3. 1. to institute legal proceedings against

   2. to serve a process on

4. photog

   1. to develop, rinse, fix, wash, and dry (exposed film, etc)

   2. to produce final prints or slides from (undeveloped film)

5. computing to perform mathematical and logical operations on (data) according to programmed instructions in order to obtain the required information

6. to prepare (food) using a food processor

process ² British  

/ prəˈsɛs /

verb

1. (intr) to proceed in or as if in a procession

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Pronunciation

The word process, an early 14th century French borrowing, has a regularly formed plural that adds -es to the singular. This plural, as in similar words like recesses and successes, has traditionally been pronounced : or . Recent years have seen the increasing popularity of an pronunciation for processes, perhaps by mistaken analogy with such plurals as theses and hypotheses, with which it has no connection. Although this newer pronunciation is increasingly common, it is regarded by some educated speakers as an affectation.

Usage

What are other ways to say process? A process is a systematic series of actions directed to some end. When should you use this noun over procedure or proceeding? Find out on Thesaurus.com.

Synonym Usage

Process, procedure, proceeding apply to something that goes on or takes place. A process is a series of progressive and interdependent steps by which an end is attained: a chemical process. Procedure usually implies a formal or set order of doing a thing, a method of conducting affairs: parliamentary procedure. Proceeding (usually pl.) applies to what goes on or takes place on a given occasion or to the records of the occasion: Proceedings of the Royal Academy of Sciences.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• transprocess
  noun
• preprocess
  verb
• overprocess
  verb (used with object)
• reprocess
  verb (used with object)
• processual
  adjective
• semiprocessed
  adjective
• unprocessed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• processes
  plural

Participles

• processing
  present
• processed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• process
  simple
• processes
  simple
• have processed
  perfect
• has processed
  perfect
• am processing
  progressive
• are processing
  progressive
• is processing
  progressive
• have been processing
  perfect progressive
• has been processing
  perfect progressive

Past

• processed
  simple
• had processed
  perfect
• was processing
  progressive
• were processing
  progressive
• had been processing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will process
  simple
• will have processed
  perfect
• will be processing
  progressive
• will have been processing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of process

First recorded in 1275–1325; from Middle English proces (noun), from Old French, from Latin prōcessus “a going forward,” equivalent to prō- pro- ¹ + ced-, variant stem of cēdere “to yield” + -tus suffix of verbal action, with dt > ss ; see cede, cession

Explanation

A process is a procedure, something you do in order to achieve a certain result. Some people try to carefully follow all the steps in a process. Other people just wing it. You hear this word being used a lot to describe work. "I am in the process of drafting a memo, even if I kill myself with late nights in the process." The related word procession describes people or vehicles moving forward in an orderly way — a wedding opens with the bridal procession.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

process processes processed processing

It also papers over how homeowners may be bringing certain attributes to the process that make it more likely that they’ll build wealth, like higher incomes and a propensity to save.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026

“We are going to take a couple of minutes to think about that, to process, and to regroup,” she added before ending the live broadcast.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

However, a lower calculated biological age does not necessarily mean that the aging process itself has been permanently reversed.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 16, 2026

With AI and other tools, Yoran said, teams that could triage a few hundred daily security alerts can now process a few thousand.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

We sit in silence for a bit while I process that.

From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell

Meanwhile, another vendor, Innovaccer, raised concerns about the pilot program’s launch, citing CMS’s changing requirements and expectations, unclear governance processes and the lack of time provided for end-to-end testing with the medical community.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026

The report added that the defence department is now working to "streamline procurement processes and production lead times" to address the shortages and "respond rapidly to a contingency".

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

To deal with shortfalls and delays, the Pentagon is "working to streamline procurement processes and production lead times, and to stockpile critical materials, components, and selected munitions," the report said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026

The research team, led by the laboratory of senior and co-corresponding author João Passos, PhD, a professor of Physiology at Mayo Clinic, set out to identify the molecular processes that drive SASP.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026

In addition to these traits, the subject shows mild early signs of a disorder of his thought processes.

From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote

“A lot of parents basically didn’t want their kids eating processed foods,” said Sattar.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

A three-ingredient treat: If you’d rather nosh on a less processed snack, Noah Lederman recommends a super-fresh dish that’s perfect for late summer: a heavenly concoction he’s dubbed Fish Crudo With Melon and Tomato Water.

From Slate ● Sep. 14, 2026

Servings of processed meats such as ham, sausages and chicken nuggets have been reduced to once a week and must come with a side of vegetables or fruit.

From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026

The low cost, neutral flavor and abundance of soybean oil made it ideal for processed foods.

From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026

Around dinnertime he opened his refrigerator and discovered there was nothing to eat but three individually wrapped slices of Kraft processed cheese.

From "Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen

The fMRI also detected less synchronized blood flow in regions of the children’s brains associated with attention and information processing than they did in the adults’.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026

It contains many of the nerve cells responsible for processing information.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026

Also, at five of nine mail processing facilities studied, retail clerks who were postmarking ballots by hand sometimes used stamps with inaccurate dates, according to the report.

From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2026

In Arizona, streams are mostly dry, and the state has many water-intensive mining projects, each with systems for draining stormwater and disposing of water used in minerals processing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

“We took the best- performing Chinese data operators,” said Ohmae, “and now they are processing seventy houses a day.”

From "The World Is Flat" by Thomas L. Friedman

Related Words

• action
• case
• course
• development
• growth
• means
• measure
• mechanism
• movement
• operation
• practice
• procedure
• proceeding
• progress
• rule
• step
• system
• technique
• trial
• way