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:
He keeps mentioning that he’s working to adjust his schedule so he doesn’t have to work late, seemingly for his own lifestyle, but I’m not counting on it.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
Jimmy Garoppolo is no longer on the roster and Stafford was on a limited schedule during training camp, so Bennett worked with the first-team offense for the first time in his career.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
PDT on Prime Video, the NBA announced Wednesday during another stage of the schedule release that will wrap up Thursday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
One persistent argument in the world of semiconductor finance is how long chips hold their value, and what is the appropriate depreciation schedule for the processors powering AI data centers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Callaway appeared at our side as we unhooked the last of the sensors and handed us each a piece of paper with a neatly printed schedule on it.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
British budget carrier easyJet has called off about 100 flights out of French airports on Saturday and Sunday because of a strike by cabin crew furious over repeated changes to their schedules.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
Even years later, many cities still haven’t fully returned to the schedules they kept before 2020.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
Indexes also tweak their lists of constituents on different schedules.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
Multiple neighbors were unable to speak up during the virtual hearing because of their work schedules, language barriers, age and difficulty navigating the online meeting’s comment system.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026
In the lobby, Dr. Margot hands out schedules and maps.
From "You Bring the Distant Near" by Mitali Perkins
China has also announced its Tianwen-3 spacecraft is scheduled for launch around 2028 and will return Mars samples to Earth around 2031 -- potentially earlier than MMX's sample return.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
The coming week is expected to be relatively quiet, with no major economic reports scheduled.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 16, 2026
Tyler Glasnow is scheduled to make one more minor-league start, consisting of five innings and 75 pitches.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
The mother and daughter are scheduled to go to trial in September.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
Of the two talks Farmer was scheduled to deliver, one was for clinicians about the specifics of treating AIDS, and the other was more general, about poverty and inequality, especially in Haiti.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
USC coach Lincoln Riley said the Trojans could not compromise on scheduling all future games against Notre Dame early in the season.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
The Army hopes to expand the online scheduling and concierge service to more ranges and also allow allies and foreign companies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
Salt acknowledged the difficulties of finding more time in the schedule, while noting the impact the current scheduling had on his squad.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
At least now I know what triggered the unexpected medical bill and what to ask before scheduling the test next year.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
That kind of intensive scheduling was almost entirely absent from the lives of the poor children.
From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell
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.
