compilation
Pronunciation
- IPA: /ˌkɒm.pɪˈleɪ.ʃən/ (UK); /ˌkɑm.pɪˈleɪ.ʃən/ (US)[1]
Etymology
It is inherited from Middle English compilacioun, borrowed from Old French compilacion (“compilation, collection”),[2][3][4] from Latin compīlātiō (“a compilation; literally a pillaging”),[2][3] from the past participle stem of compīlō (“to plunder”) (see compile).[2][4]
Earliest recorded meaning
That which is compiled, a literary work formed by bringing together material from others: 1426 in the OED, the mid-15th century in Etymonline.[5][2] The action of compiling is from about 1430.[5]
Semantic evolution
Heaping or piling together, accumulation, is from 1598.[5] In computing, the translation of a program into machine code is from 1960,[5] and the compilation film, assembled from various sources, from 1953.[5] A collection of recordings, as a compilation album, is a common modern use.[6]
Timeline
- 1426 – a compiled work.[5]
- c. 1430 – the act of compiling.[5]
- 1598 – accumulation.[5]
- 1953 – compilation film.[5]
- 1960 – compilation in computing.[5]
Modern meaning
Noun
- Something compiled, such as a list, report, anthology or collection of recordings.
- The act or process of compiling.
- (computing) The translation of a program into machine code by a compiler.
Word family
- precompilation
- recompilation
Related words
- compile
- compiler
- pile
References
- ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
- ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins