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software

Etymology and origin of the English word software

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
1958
Ultimate origin
English (soft,ware)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English soft
English software

Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈsɒft.weə/, US /ˈsɑːft.wer/[1]

Etymology

It is a compound, from English soft + ware,[2][3] coined in the computing sense on the model of hardware.[2][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

An earlier soft-wares, woollen or cotton fabrics and other perishable goods, is recorded by 1820.[2][3] The computing sense is a separate coinage, from 1958 in Merriam-Webster[4] and by 1960 in Etymonline and the OED.[2][5]

Semantic evolution

The computing sense means the programs and routines that direct a computer, as opposed to the machine itself, the hardware.[6][5] The OED's 1960 example refers especially to system programs such as compilers and library routines.[5] Transferred and figurative uses date from 1963,[5] and software engineering from 1969.[5] Collins also lists video cassettes and discs for a video system.[7]

Timeline

  • 1820 – soft-wares, textiles and perishable goods.[2]
  • 1958 – computer programs.[4]
  • 1963 – figurative use.[5]
  • 1969 – software engineering.[5]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The programs and other data that direct the operation of a computer, as distinguished from the hardware.
  2. Recorded material such as video discs for use with a particular system.

Word family

  • firmware
  • freeware
  • shareware
  • wetware
  • systems software
  • vaporware
  • hardware
  • soft
  • ware
  • wares

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 d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  7. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
Cite this entry

“Software.” Etymologically, 15 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/software. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

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