compile

[ kuhm-pahyl ]
See synonyms for compile on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object),com·piled, com·pil·ing.
  1. to put together (documents, selections, or other materials) in one book or work.

  2. to make (a book, writing, or the like) of materials from various sources: to compile an anthology of plays; to compile a graph showing changes in profit.

  1. to gather together: to compile data.

  2. Computers. to translate (a computer program) from a high-level language into another language, usually machine language, using a compiler.

Origin of compile

1
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English, from Latin compīlāre “to rob, pillage, steal from another writer,” equivalent to com- “with” + -pīlāre, perhaps akin to pīla “column, pier,” pīlāre “to fix firmly, plant” (hence, “pile up, accumulate”); see com-, pile1

Other words from compile

  • pre·com·pile, verb (used with object), pre·com·piled, pre·com·pil·ing.
  • re·com·pile, verb (used with object), re·com·piled, re·com·pil·ing.
  • un·com·piled, adjective
  • well-com·piled, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for compile

compile

/ (kəmˈpaɪl) /


verb(tr)
  1. to make or compose from other materials or sources: to compile a list of names

  2. to collect or gather for a book, hobby, etc

  1. computing to create (a set of machine instructions) from a high-level programming language, using a compiler

Origin of compile

1
C14: from Latin compīlāre to pile together, plunder, from com- together + pīlāre to thrust down, pack

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012