Etymologically
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format

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 00:59. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈfɔː.mæt/, US /ˈfɔːr.mæt/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French format, partly through German,[2][3] from New Latin liber formātus (“a book formed”) in a certain shape and size,[4][3] from the past participle of Latin fōrmāre “to form”,[4][5] from forma “form, shape”, the source of form.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The shape and size of a book, such as octavo or quarto: 1840 in the OED and Etymonline.[6][4]

Semantic evolution

It was extended to other things in 1936,[6] and a style of arrangement or presentation, such as of a radio or television programme, is from 1955.[6] In computing, an arrangement of data is from 1955.[6][4] The verb, to put into a format, especially of a computer disk or data, is from 1964.[6][4][2]

Timeline

  • 1840 – the size of a book.[6][4]
  • 1955 – a style of arrangement; data in computing.[6]
  • 1964 – verb, to arrange in a format.[6][2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The general arrangement or plan of something, such as a television programme.
  2. The shape, size and layout of a book or other publication.
  3. (computing) A way in which data is arranged for storage or display.

Verb

  1. (computing) To arrange data in a particular way, or prepare a disk to store data.
  2. To arrange text or a document in a particular layout.

Word family

  • formatter
  • preformat

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  3. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press