Program or Programme? Computers Get the Short One
A programme is a plan or a broadcast. British English spells it with the -mme ending except for computer programs, which keep the American spelling.
A programme is a plan, a schedule or a broadcast. British English uses the long spelling for all of those and makes one exception: a computer *program* keeps the short form, because the computing sense arrived from America. American English uses *program* throughout.
- A plan of activities. *A training programme.*
- A broadcast. *A radio programme.*
- A set of instructions for a computer. *A program crash.*
- A printed list of a performance. *Buy a programme.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun (UK) | programme | A new programme. |
| Noun (computing) | program | A short program. |
| Noun (US) | program | A TV program. |
| Verb | program | Program the timer. |
| Person | programmer | A software programmer. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The programme starts at nine.British broadcasting.
- The program will not compile.Computing, in both varieties.
- He programmed the heating to come on at six.British doubles the m before -ed.
Related terms
- Programming — writing software, or scheduling broadcasts
- Programmatic — done according to a program, or automated
- Deprogram — undo conditioning
- Programme notes — the essay in a concert programme
- Pogrom — an unrelated word, from Russian
From Greek *programma*, a written public notice, from *pro*, before, and *graphein*, to write. The French form gave British English the -mme ending.
Program or programme in Britain?
Programme for everything except computers. A computer program is always spelled the short way.
Programmed or programed?
Programmed and programming with two m's in British English. American English allows one m, though two is common there too.