See also: Software

English

Etymology

From soft +‎ -ware, by contrast with hardware (the computer itself). Coined by Paul Niquette in 1953;[1] first used in print by Richard Carhart in 1953.[2]

Pronunciation

Noun

software (uncountable)

  1. (computing) Encoded computer instructions, usually modifiable (unless stored in some form of unalterable memory such as ROM).
    • 1958, John W. Tukey, "The Teaching of Concrete Mathematics" in The American Mathematical Monthly, vol. 65, no. 1 (Jan. 1958), pp 1-9:
      The "software" comprising the carefully planned interpretive routines, compilers, and other aspects of automative programming are at least as important to the modern electronic calculator as its "hardware" of tubes, transistors, wires, tapes and the like.
    • 1995, Paul Niquette, Softword: Provenance for the Word ‘Software’:
      As originally conceived, the word "software" was merely an obvious way to distinguish a program from the computer itself. A program comprised sequences of changeable instructions each having the power to command the behavior of the permanently crafted machinery, the "hardware."
    Hyponyms: application software, data-oriented software, kitchen table software, on-premises software, malware, schlockware, shareware, shovelware, spyware, system software
  2. (military) The human beings involved in warfare, as opposed to hardware such as weapons and vehicles.
    • 1989, Christopher Layton, A Step Beyond Fear: Building a European Security Community:
      The Americans have devoted their attention to the hardware of disarmament: Europeans can make a special contribution to the 'software' or human content of detente.
    • 1991, New York Magazine, volume 24, number 5, page 33:
      [] preview of horrific images to come, as the hardware stage of the war yields to the software — or human — stage.

Usage notes

Software is a mass noun (some software, a piece of software). By non-native speakers it is sometimes erroneously treated as a countable noun (a software, some softwares).

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Descendants

  • Amharic: ሶፍትዌር (softəwer)

Translations

See also

References

  1. ^ "Part 0. Introduction: The Software Age", Softword: Provenance for the Word 'Software', 2006 by Paul Niquette, →ISBN, adapted from article first published in 1995 in author’s magazine, Sophisticated: The Magazine, →ISBN (archival links)
  2. ^ Carhart, R.R. (14 August 1953) A survey of the current status of the electronic reliability problem[1], Santa Monica, CA: Rand Corporation, page 65

Further reading

Anagrams

Czech

Etymology

Borrowed from English software.

Pronunciation

Noun

software m inan

  1. (computing) software
    Synonyms: programové vybavení, (rare) programové prostředky

Declension

Derived terms

See also

Further reading

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from English software.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈsɔft.ʋɛr/
  • (file)
  • Hyphenation: soft‧ware

Noun

software m (uncountable)

  1. software (encoded computer instructions)
    Synonym: programmatuur

Derived terms

Related terms

French

Pronunciation

Noun

software m (plural softwares)

  1. (archaic) software
    Synonym: logiciel

Further reading

Italian

Etymology

Borrowed from English software.

Pronunciation

Noun

software m (invariable)

  1. (computing) software (encoded computer instructions)

Related terms

References

  1. ^ software in Luciano Canepari, Dizionario di Pronuncia Italiana (DiPI)

Norman

Etymology

Borrowed from English software.

Noun

software m (uncountable)

  1. (Jersey, computing) software (encoded computer instructions)

Polish

 
Polish Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia pl

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English software.

Pronunciation

Noun

software m inan

  1. (software) software (encoded computer instructions)
    Synonym: oprogramowanie
    Coordinate term: hardware
  2. (technology) technical and organizational ideas

Declension

Derived terms

adjective

Related terms

adverb

Further reading

Portuguese

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English software.

Pronunciation

Noun

software m (plural softwares)

  1. (computing) software (encoded computer instructions)
  2. (computing) a piece of software; program

Derived terms

Related terms

Romanian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English software.

Noun

software n (plural (rare) software-uri)

  1. (computing) software (encoded computer instructions)
    Synonym: soft

Declension

Related terms

Spanish

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English software.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈsoftweɾ/ [ˈsoft̪.weɾ], /ˈsofweɾ/ [ˈsof.weɾ]
  • Rhymes: -oftweɾ, -ofweɾ
  • Syllabification: soft‧ware

Noun

software m (plural softwares)

  1. (computing) software (encoded computer instructions)
    Synonym: programa

Usage notes

According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed.

Derived terms

Expressions

See also

Further reading