Standard Lemma guide

compile

noun · verb · 11 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • General-American, Received-Pronunciation: /kəmˈpaɪl/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Australian: /kəmˈpɑɪl/
  • rhymes with -aɪl
  • CMU ARPABET: K AH0 M P AY1 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

An act of compiling code.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, programming, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To make by gathering pieces from various sources.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Examples

  • Samuel Johnson compiled one of the most influential dictionaries of the English language.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To construct; to build.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

To achieve (a break) by making a sequence of shots.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Topics: ball-games, games, hobbies, lifestyle, snooker, sports

Examples

  • Steve Davis compiled a 147.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

verb

Meaning 5

To use a compiler to process source code and produce executable code.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, programming, sciences

Examples

  • After I compile this program I’ll run it and see if it works.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

verb

Meaning 6

To be successfully processed by a compiler into executable code.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, programming, sciences

Examples

  • There must be an error in my source code because it won’t compile.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

verb

Meaning 7

To contain or comprise.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete, transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

verb

Meaning 8

To write; to compose.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

9

verb

Meaning 9

put together out of existing material

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • compile a list

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: compose

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: make

Narrower terms: cobble together, cobble up, anthologize, anthologise, catalogue, catalog

10

verb

Meaning 10

use a computer program to translate source code written in a particular programming language into computer-readable machine code that can be executed

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: make

11

verb

Meaning 11

get or gather together

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • I am accumulating evidence for the man's unfaithfulness to his wife
  • She is amassing a lot of data for her thesis
  • She rolled up a small fortune

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: roll up, collect, accumulate, pile up, amass, hoard

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: store, hive away, lay in, put in, salt away, stack away, stash away

Narrower terms: run up, corral, collect, pull in, scrape, scrape up, scratch, come up, lump, chunk, bale, catch, fund

History

Etymology

From Middle English compilen, from Old French compiler, from Latin compīlō (“to plunder”).

Across languages

Translations

76 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: تجميع — assemble from a collection
  • Bulgarian: съби́рам (sǎbíram) — assemble from a collection
  • Bulgarian: съставям (sǎstavjam) — assemble from a collection
  • Chinese Mandarin: 編撰 (biānzhuàn) — assemble from a collection
  • Chinese Mandarin: 彙編 /汇编 (huìbiān) — assemble from a collection
  • Danish: kompilere — assemble from a collection
  • Dutch: samenstellen — assemble from a collection
  • Esperanto: kompili — assemble from a collection
  • Finnish: koota — assemble from a collection
  • Finnish: koostaa — assemble from a collection
  • French: compiler — assemble from a collection
  • German: zusammenstellen — assemble from a collection
  • Ancient Greek: συντάσσω (suntássō) — assemble from a collection
  • Hungarian: összeállít — assemble from a collection
  • Hungarian: fordít — assemble from a collection
  • Irish: tiomsaigh — assemble from a collection
  • Italian: compilare — assemble from a collection
  • Italian: assemblare — assemble from a collection
  • Italian: predisporre — assemble from a collection
  • Italian: raccogliere — assemble from a collection
  • Japanese: 編集する (henshū suru) — assemble from a collection
  • Māori: whakahiato — assemble from a collection
  • Norwegian: kompilere; sette sammen; samle; utarbeide — assemble from a collection
  • Persian: فراهمیستن — assemble from a collection
  • Persian: ترجمیستن — assemble from a collection
  • Polish: kompilować — assemble from a collection
  • Polish: skompilować — assemble from a collection
  • Portuguese: compilar — assemble from a collection
  • Romanian: alcătui (dintr-o colecție) — assemble from a collection
  • Romanian: compila — assemble from a collection
  • Russian: собира́ть (sobirátʹ) — assemble from a collection
  • Russian: собра́ть (sobrátʹ) — assemble from a collection
  • Russian: составля́ть (sostavljátʹ) — assemble from a collection
  • Russian: соста́вить (sostávitʹ) — assemble from a collection
  • Spanish: copilar — assemble from a collection
  • Spanish: recopilar — assemble from a collection
  • Spanish: compilar — assemble from a collection
  • Swedish: sammanställa — assemble from a collection
  • Swedish: kompilera — assemble from a collection
  • Turkish: derlemek — assemble from a collection
  • Bulgarian: компилирам (kompiliram) — produce executable
  • Chinese Mandarin: 編譯 /编译 (biānyì) — produce executable
  • Czech: přeložit — produce executable
  • Czech: kompilovat — produce executable
  • Dutch: compileren — produce executable
  • Finnish: kääntää — produce executable
  • French: compiler — produce executable
  • German: kompilieren — produce executable
  • Greek: μεταγλωττίζω (metaglottízo) — produce executable
  • Hebrew: קימפל (kimpél) — produce executable
  • Irish: tiomsaigh — produce executable
  • Italian: compilare — produce executable
  • Japanese: コンパイルする (konpairu suru) — produce executable
  • Malagasy: mandika — produce executable
  • Persian: ترجمیستن — produce executable
  • Polish: kompilować — produce executable
  • Polish: skompilować — produce executable
  • Portuguese: compilar — produce executable
  • Romanian: compila — produce executable
  • Russian: компили́ровать (kompilírovatʹ) — produce executable
  • Russian: скомпили́ровать (skompilírovatʹ) — produce executable
  • Russian: откомпили́ровать (otkompilírovatʹ) — produce executable
  • Russian: собирать (sobiratʹ) — produce executable
  • Russian: собрать (sobratʹ) — produce executable
  • Spanish: compilar — produce executable
  • Swedish: kompilera — produce executable
  • Turkish: derlemek — produce executable
  • Finnish: kääntyä — be successfully processed by a compiler
  • Greek: μεταγλωττίζομαι (metaglottízomai) — be successfully processed by a compiler
  • Hebrew: הִתְקַמְפֵּל (hitkampél) — be successfully processed by a compiler
  • Italian: compilarsi — be successfully processed by a compiler
  • Polish: kompilować się — be successfully processed by a compiler
  • Polish: skompilować się — be successfully processed by a compiler
  • Russian: компили́роваться (kompilírovatʹsja) — be successfully processed by a compiler
  • Russian: скомпили́роваться (skompilírovatʹsja) — be successfully processed by a compiler
  • Swedish: kompilera — be successfully processed by a compiler