program
Americannoun
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programs
plural
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a plan of action to accomplish a specified end.
a school lunch program.
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a plan or schedule of activities, procedures, etc., to be followed.
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a broadcasted television or radio production or similar internet-based content produced for distribution.
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Also called computer program. Digital Technology. a precise sequence of instructions enabling a computer to perform a task; a piece of software.
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a collection of principles, actions, objectives, etc., established with a long-term goal in mind; platform; policy.
A review of our education initiatives and programs suggests we are meeting our goals.
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a list of items, pieces, performers, etc., in a musical, theatrical, or other entertainment.
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an entertainment with reference to its pieces or numbers.
a program of American and French music.
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a planned, coordinated group of activities, procedures, etc., often for a specific purpose, or a facility offering such a series of activities.
a drug rehabilitation program;
a graduate program in linguistics.
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a prospectus or syllabus.
a program of courses being offered.
verb (used with object)
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programs,
present (3rd person singular)
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programmed,
past participle, past
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programed,
past participle, past
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programming,
present participle
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programing
present participle
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to schedule as part of a program.
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Digital Technology. to write code for (a computer program or application).
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to insert or encode specific operating instructions into (a machine or apparatus).
We'll program the bells to ring at ten-minute intervals.
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to insert (instructions) into a machine or apparatus.
An automatic release has been programmed into the lock as a safety feature.
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to cause to absorb or incorporate automatic responses, attitudes, or the like; condition.
Our parents programmed us to respect our elders.
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to set, regulate, or modify so as to produce a specific response or reaction.
Program your eating habits to eliminate sweets.
verb (used without object)
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programs,
present (3rd person singular)
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programmed,
past participle, past
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programed,
past participle, past
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programming,
present participle
-
programing
present participle
-
to plan or write a program.
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Digital Technology. to write computer code.
noun
verb
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(tr) to feed a program into (a computer)
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(tr) to arrange (data) into a suitable form so that it can be processed by a computer
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(intr) to write a program
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A organized system of instructions and data interpreted by a computer. Programming instructions are often referred to as code.
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See more at source code See also programming language
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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programsimple
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programssimple
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have programedperfect
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have programmedperfect
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has programedperfect
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has programmedperfect
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am programingprogressive
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am programmingprogressive
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are programingprogressive
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are programmingprogressive
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is programingprogressive
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is programmingprogressive
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have been programingperfect progressive
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have been programmingperfect progressive
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has been programingperfect progressive
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has been programmingperfect progressive
Past
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programedsimple
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programmedsimple
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had programedperfect
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had programmedperfect
-
was programingprogressive
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was programmingprogressive
-
were programingprogressive
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were programmingprogressive
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had been programingperfect progressive
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had been programmingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of program
First recorded in 1625–35; from Late Latin programma, from Greek prógramma “public notice in writing”; see pro- 2, -gram 1
Explanation
A program is a sequence or plan. At your niece's dance recital you may be dismayed to discover that her piece is 19th on the program. Settle in! Program comes from the Greek for "public notice." When you go to the theater, you'll be handed a program with the names of the play and the performers. We call television or radio shows programs, especially if they’re on regularly. If you're trying to get in shape, you'll need an exercise program. To program is to plan or organize something, or to write the code and execute the commands that make computers work.
Vocabulary lists containing program
Computer Science and Technology - Introductory
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Computer Science and Technology - Middle School
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Computer Science and Technology - High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Any coach who says “I don’t want to know” where a transfer lives to escape accountability might want to start realizing an entire program can go down when they abdicate responsibility.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2026
The NGC2 program is designed to give troops the latest communication, mapping and artificial intelligence tools.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
The payments will come from the Medicare Improvement Fund, established by Congress in 2008 to fund improvements to Medicare’s fee-for-service program.
From Salon ● Oct. 3, 2026
Hammami was sent through a deradicalization program and given a desk job, but later found his way to a new job in the United Arab Emirates, they said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
Mr. Harris knew the program, and he’d seen my work.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Many adults remember Little League and rec programs, dad coaches and the snack shack.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
L.A. voting rights groups rally to recruit poll watchers, launch protection programs, and counter potential election disruption in the November vote.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026
The office will also oversee the Armed Forces Chaplains Board and advocate for funding for religious programs across the military.
From Salon ● Oct. 3, 2026
If acted upon, these MPs’ recommendations could influence future investment in community exercise programs and support services.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 2, 2026
Axel hasn’t missed one of those programs in over a year, and even though the words are the same, going all the way back to the day he first met Dr. Martin, it doesn’t matter.
From "A Bird Will Soar" by Alison Green Myers
“That tells you that it really is more about cultural connection. It is about a nuance that is present in culturally programed content,” de Armas said.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 16, 2022
Co-founder and chief executive Philippe Goldman says the robots have been programed to maintain top quality control.
From BBC ● Dec. 19, 2021
Leidecker used iPads programed to listen and acoustically act.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2018
While it’s hard to know if this effort was coordinated, either one individual or several individuals appear to have programed numerous bots to help seed the conspiracy theory on Twitter.
From Slate ● Sep. 7, 2018
I vaguely remember a TV story from the 50s that showed a room size computer at DuPont that was programed to generate millions of syllables for prefixes and syllables for suffixes.
From New York Times ● Jan. 15, 2015
During our visit, Robert - who is programmed to be friendly -repeatedly asked Vera how she was, reassuring her "I'll be here if you need me".
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
Three decades on, the cutting edge of chess technology is artificial intelligence programmed to rediscover the wide world of possibilities from first principles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
He’s like, “I just can’t watch shows with commercials anymore” — as people are programmed now.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
Unlike the 2019 GPT-2 paper, this fearmongering has broken through in a remarkable way, prompting the public to panic over stories about programmed “agents” from the aforementioned firms hacking into other companies’ infrastructure.
From Slate ● Sep. 15, 2026
Maybe I am programmed never to admit anything?
From "The Adoration of Jenna Fox" by Mary E. Pearson
More Spheres would be bullish for the company because of royalty and other income, as well as the ability to distribute original programing in multiple locations.
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2025
Non-routine cognitive jobs include public relations and computer programing.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 17, 2024
Indeed, Kunst’s submission to the 2018 CRC points to this TV programing note in the Miami News for channel 10’s Florida Journal on Oct.
From Slate ● Jan. 18, 2024
It takes place in the break room of a local Hobby Lobby, on a deadly accurate set by Wilson Chin featuring a malfunctioning microwave on the counter and soporific motivational programing on the closed-circuit television.
From New York Times ● Feb. 21, 2023
Remedies for alteration of programing by cable systems.
From Copyright Law of the United States of America: contained in Title 17 of the United States Code. by United States
Charles' poem featured as part of BBC Radio 6 Music's Way With Words event, a day of programming marking National Poetry Day on Thursday.
From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026
My department worked on free public programming, on creative equity, on cross-sector community development and on measuring the social impact of art.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026
Beyond the usual struggles of fundraising, programming, and maintaining high standards and morale among roughly 100 talented instrumentalists came two extraordinary obstacles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Notice how similar the programming instructions are for computers, systems and people.
From Salon ● Sep. 27, 2026
The teachers announced there was mandatory programming tonight.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
