format

Academic Word List, sublist 9.

About 18.99 uses per million words.

Meaning

1. noun The layout of a publication or document.
2. noun The form of presentation of something.
3. noun The type of programming that a radio station broadcasts; such as a certain genre of music, news, sports, talk, etc.

   The radio station changed the format of its evening program.

4. noun A file type.
5. verb To create or edit the layout of a document.
6. verb Change a document so it will fit onto a different type of page.
7. verb To prepare a mass storage medium for initial use, erasing any existing data in the process.

   I lost weeks of work when I inadvertently formatted my hard drive.

Similar words

initialize arrange data format data formatting edition file print reporting notation copy

Often followed by

of for and is that to the in as

Word family

formats formatted formatter formatters formatting