schedule
Americannoun
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schedules
plural
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a plan of procedure, usually written, for a proposed objective, especially with reference to the sequence of and time allotted for each item or operation necessary to its completion.
The schedule allows three weeks for this stage.
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a series of things to be done or of events to occur at or during a particular time or period.
He always has a full schedule.
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a timetable.
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a written or printed statement of details, often in classified or tabular form, especially one forming an appendix or explanatory addition to another document.
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Obsolete. a written paper.
noun
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a plan of procedure for a project, allotting the work to be done and the time for it
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a list of items
a schedule of fixed prices
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a list of times, esp of arrivals and departures; timetable
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a list of tasks to be performed, esp within a set period
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law a list or inventory, usually supplementary to a contract, will, etc
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at the expected or planned time
verb
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to make a schedule of or place in a schedule
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to plan to occur at a certain time
Synonym Usage
See list 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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schedulernoun
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subschedulenoun
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prescheduleverb (used with object)
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schedularadjective
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unscheduledadjective
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well-scheduledadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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schedulesimple
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schedulessimple
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have scheduledperfect
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has scheduledperfect
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am schedulingprogressive
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are schedulingprogressive
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is schedulingprogressive
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have been schedulingperfect progressive
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has been schedulingperfect progressive
Past
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scheduledsimple
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had scheduledperfect
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was schedulingprogressive
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were schedulingprogressive
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had been schedulingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of schedule
First recorded in 1350–1400; from Late Latin schedula, equivalent to Latin sched(a) “leaf of paper” + -ula noun suffix ( see -ule); replacing Middle English cedule, sedule, from Middle French, from Late Latin, as above
Explanation
A schedule is a plan of things to be done and the time when they will be done. It is the thing you write down in your planner. If you're a student, you probably have your class schedule memorized within the first few weeks of school. This noun derives from Middle English sedule "slip of parchment or paper, note," from Late Latin schedula, from scheda "a strip of papyrus," from Greek schida "a splinter of wood." The modern spelling schedule did not become established until the mid 17th century. And the current American pronunciation, patterned on words such as scheme and school, was not in use until the 19th century.
Vocabulary lists containing schedule
Words Whose Pronunciation Has Changed Over Time
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List 3
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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:
Investors have been tracking the unlock schedule for SpaceX shareholders who had invested in the company ahead of the IPO.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
The manager does this so that all of the players have a similar output when they are navigating their busy fixture schedule.
From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026
The airline said the flight landed ahead of schedule despite the incident.
From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2026
This method involves the parents determining the loan amount, payment schedule, down payment and fixed interest rate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026
He said it probably made more sense to take the pressure off the weekend sleepovers—do them only when they work for everybody’s schedule.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
"Cell fate wasn't locked in all at once. Different cell types settled into their identity on their own separate schedules, some early and some late."
From Science Daily ● Oct. 13, 2026
But she constantly worried her choices, from sleep schedules to handling toddler tantrums, were "ruining their lives forever".
From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026
She said Ostirion could also help Deutsche Bahn improve its relations with passengers, who are "often frustrated" by inaccurate schedules and chaotic communications.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
Skills managing schedules, budgets and a team of people are appealing, she said.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 2, 2026
And even with their busy work schedules, my dad was still able to find time to coach Kia's soccer team, and my mom still chaperoned Kia's school field trips and attended all his games.
From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi
While city traffic data shows a negligible increase in driving times, many residents tell a different story, and they fear scheduled construction projects and road closures will make things worse.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
The UK's Upper Tribunal has agreed to hear legal challenges to the scheme, with a hearing scheduled for 16 to 26 February.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
The latest data on U.S. existing-home sales are scheduled for 10 a.m.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
A Doja Cat concert originally scheduled for Oct.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
They were scheduled for testing one or two at a time.
From "Women in Space" by Karen Bush Gibson
One was that the scheduling of the 2026 World Cup final on 19 July was the latest date for a summer World Cup since 1966.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
Highway maintenance, railroad scheduling and earthquake detection were among the civilian activities affected.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
OpenAI is billing its “always-on” AI agents as something more than a tool for making dinner reservations or scheduling appointments.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026
U.S. and Israeli officials said that the meeting didn’t come together due to scheduling constraints.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
Before I traveled, staffers drove the routes I’d take to venues, timing my transit down to the minute, scheduling my bathroom breaks in advance.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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.
