database

noun

da·​ta·​base ˈdā-tə-ˌbās How to pronounce database (audio)
ˈda-,
 also  ˈdä-
computers
: a usually large collection of data organized especially for rapid search and retrieval (as by a computer)
an online database
database transitive verb

Examples of database in a Sentence

All of our customers' information was kept in a database.
Recent Examples on the Web Head to our database of more than 10,000 recipes to find what to cook this spring. Aaron Hutcherson, Washington Post, 4 Mar. 2024 Glue traps — boards coated with an adhesive meant to entrap rodents — have ensnared birds, bats, chipmunks, lizards, opossums, mice, rabbits, salamanders, snakes, turtles and even flying squirrels, Shaw said, citing the WILD-ONe database, created by the Wildlife Center of Virginia. Brittny Mejia, Los Angeles Times, 4 Mar. 2024 Tiahrt named after proponent of gun rights The Tiahrt Amendment, first enacted as a rider to appropriations legislation in 2003, grants the ATF one exception to blocking the public disclosure of information from its firearm trace database. Emma Tucker, CNN, 4 Mar. 2024 If the car isn't listed below, owners can check USA TODAY’s automotive recall database or search NHTSA’s database for new recalls. Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 4 Mar. 2024 For example, Croatia was recently ranked as the safest country in Europe to walk at night [by Numbeo, a database of property, consumer, and quality-of-life metrics]. R. Daniel Foster, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2024 In Arizona alone, the database recorded 4,177 deaths last year, including men, women and children. Sarah Lapidus, The Arizona Republic, 2 Mar. 2024 North Texas recorded 94 degrees on Monday, which is good for seventh all-time on the weather service historical database. Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Feb. 2024 Similarly in Georgia in 2018, a federal judge ordered the state to change its procedure flagging potential non-citizens, after more than 50,000 Georgia residents were flagged because the driver's license database wasn't updated when those applicants became citizens. Kayla Dwyer, The Indianapolis Star, 28 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'database.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1962, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of database was circa 1962

Dictionary Entries Near database

Cite this Entry

“Database.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/database. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

database

noun
da·​ta·​base ˈdāt-ə-ˌbās How to pronounce database (audio)
ˈdat-,
 also  ˈdät-
: a collection of data that is organized especially to be used by a computer
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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