template

American  

[tem-plit] / ˈtɛm plɪt /

Or templet

noun

• templates
  plural

1. a pattern, mold, or the like, usually consisting of a thin plate of wood or metal, serving as a gauge or guide in mechanical work.

2. anything that determines or serves as a pattern; a model.

   You can use my notes as a template for employee evaluations.

3. Building Trades. a horizontal piece, as of timber or stone, in a wall, to receive and distribute the pressure of a girder, beam, or the like.

4. Shipbuilding. either of two wedges in each of the temporary blocks forming the support for the keel of a ship while building.

5. Aerial Photogrammetry. any object having lines, slots, or straightedges to represent lines radiating from the center of a photograph, used for graphic triangulation.

6. Genetics. a strand of DNA or RNA that serves as a pattern for the synthesis of a complementary strand of nucleic acid or protein.

7. Computers.

   1. a small sheet or strip of cardboard, plastic, or the like, that fits over a portion of the keyboard and provides ready reference to the keystroke commands of a particular software program.

   2. an electronic file with a predesigned, customized format and structure, as for a fax, letter, or expense report, ready to be filled in.

8. Also called safe.  a marble base for a toilet.

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template British  

/ ˈtɛmplɪt /

noun

1. a gauge or pattern, cut out in wood or metal, used in woodwork, etc, to help shape something accurately

2. a pattern cut out in card or plastic, used in various crafts to reproduce shapes

3. a short beam, made of metal, wood, or stone, that is used to spread a load, as over a doorway

4. biochem the molecular structure of a compound that serves as a pattern for the production of the molecular structure of another specific compound in a reaction

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template Scientific  

/ tĕm′plĭt /

1. A molecule of a nucleic acid, such as DNA, that serves as a pattern for the synthesis of another molecule of a nucleic acid.

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Usage

What does template mean? A template is a pattern, model, or guide for the creation of some kind of project. Template is most commonly used in a general way, but it has many specific meanings depending on the context it is being used in. Example: When creating your résumé, don’t start from scratch—use a template so that you can make sure you format it properly.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• templates
  plural

Etymology

Origin of template

1670–80; alteration of templet, apparently by falsely etymologizing final syllable as plate ¹

Explanation

A template is a model or a guide for producing something. When you build your website, you might use a free template, filling in your own text and images. Template has a few different meanings, but the most common one is as a pattern that can be used in building or reproducing something. If you are designing costumes for a production of Shakespeare, you might use the design of one of Queen Elizabeth's dresses as a template to work from. In building, a template is a block of wood that goes under a door or a wall to distribute weight.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

template templates

Giardiniera is my first choice here — jars of it seem to appear at every Chicago market — but think of the filling as a template for whatever good, spicy pickled thing you bring home.

From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026

"People have a certain template they think I should follow, and it's like, you cannot tell me how to dream," she says.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

The Beatles had created a template that thousands of bands followed, but Beck wasn’t a prolific lyricist in a medium where vocals are key.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

And that’s the only template Hollywood needs to follow.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

Then she laid the square template on top and cut the whole thing into a perfect square.

From "Hope Springs" by Jaime Berry

The Vaughan and Athenaeum portraits were an immediate hit and became the templates: Over time, Stuart would paint over 100 of them, including for such international luminaries as Viscount Cremorne, Benjamin West and Aaron Burr.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026

But these templates don’t come anywhere close to the real thing, so Kakaiya decided to make an anatomically precise, patented 3D-printed model.

From Slate ● Jun. 7, 2026

There are plenty of free budgeting apps, free balance-sheet templates, free retirement calculators and free YouTube tutorials.

From MarketWatch ● May 15, 2026

Acting as programmable templates, they could position nanoparticles with sub-nanometer accuracy.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 31, 2026

Then two new daughter strands are made on the two parental templates, thereby forming two DNA molecules identical to the original molecule.

From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson

Related Words

• arrangement