ai

IPA/ˌeɪˈaɪ/
KK[ˈaɪ]IPA/ˌeɪˈaɪ/

ai — noun

  • aisingular
  • aisplural

1. the use of computers and software to do things that normally need human thinking

1.nounB1
Definition

the use of computers and software to do things that normally need human thinking — such as understanding speech, recognising images, making choices, and learning from experience

Example

Minh used AI to translate the old family letters from Vietnamese into English.

use AI to + verb for practical tasks

The hospital now relies on AI to spot early signs of disease in patient scans.

AI + to-infinitive for a specific function

Common collocations
  • AI technology
  • AI research
  • AI tools
  • powered by AI
  • AI-generated
Synonyms

Grammar Patterns

AI + verb (singular)

in AI

use AI to + verb

Common Mistakes

She works in an AI.
She works in AI.
The field of artificial intelligence is uncountable; do not use 'a' or 'an'.

2. a computer program or machine built to do tasks that usually need human intellig

2.nounB2
Definition

a computer program or machine built to do tasks that usually need human intelligence, such as answering questions, writing text, or creating pictures

Example

Andrei built a small AI to tell the difference between wild mushrooms in the forest.

build an AI + to-infinitive

The startup released an AI that writes computer code faster than most junior programmers.

an AI that + clause

Common collocations
  • build an AI
  • train an AI
  • an AI that can
  • ask an AI
Synonyms
  • AI system

    emphasises that it is a complete working system, not just a model

  • AI model

    specifically the trained program; narrower than AI system

  • bot

    informal; usually for simpler or chat-based programs

Grammar Patterns

an AI

AIs (plural)

the AI + verb

Usage Note

Only sense that can be plural (AIs). Distinguish from sense 1: sense 2 refers to a specific system you can count; sense 1 refers to the whole field of technology.

Common Mistakes

The AI are getting smarter every year.
AIs are getting smarter every year.
Use the countable plural 'AIs', not 'the AI' when referring to systems in general.

3. a medical method of helping a woman or female animal become pregnant by placing

3.nounC1
Definition

a medical method of helping a woman or female animal become pregnant by placing sperm inside her body without sexual intercourse

Example

The dairy farmer used AI to breed cows that produced more milk each season.

used AI + to-infinitive in an agricultural context

Tara and her partner chose AI after trying for a baby for nearly four years.

chose AI — verb collocation

Common collocations
  • AI treatment
  • conceive through AI
  • AI programme
  • AI technician
Synonyms

Grammar Patterns

through AI

by AI

AI treatment

Usage Note

Common in farming and veterinary contexts as well as human medicine. The full form 'artificial insemination' is preferred in formal writing.

4. a slow-moving animal from South America; it has three long, curved claws on ever

4.nounC2
Definition

a slow-moving animal from South America; it has three long, curved claws on every foot and lives in trees

Example

The ai hung upside down from a cecropia branch, moving so slowly it seemed frozen.

the ai — definite article with rare animal name

Devika watched an ai at the wildlife centre spend a whole morning eating a single leaf.

Common collocations
  • ai sloth
Synonyms

Grammar Patterns

an ai

the ai

Usage Note

Pronounced like 'eye,' not 'ay-eye.' Most English speakers call this animal a 'three-toed sloth'; 'ai' is rare and mainly found in older zoology books.

Common Mistakes

I saw an AI at the zoo.
I saw an ai at the zoo.
When referring to the sloth, use lowercase 'ai' to avoid confusion with artificial intelligence.

Word family

  • artificial intelligence
    nounB1
  • AI-generated
    adjectiveB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

AI (artificial intelligence) is the broad field of making computers do tasks that seem intelligent. Machine learning is a part of AI — it is the method of letting computers learn from data rather than following fixed rules. Automation is wider: it means using any technology to do work without humans, whether the system is intelligent or not (a factory robot arm is automation; a chatbot that understands you is AI). Robotics is about building physical machines that move and act in the real world — a robot may or may not use AI. In everyday speech people often blur these, but in technical contexts the differences matter: you would say 'the warehouse uses automation to sort packages' (not AI), and 'the robot vacuum uses AI to map the room' (both robotics and AI).

artificial intelligencemachine learningautomation ↗robotics

Common collocations

Phrases

  • AI and machine learning

Prepositions

  • in AI
  • through AI
  • by AI

Etymology

TupiPortugueseEnglish

For the technology senses (1–3), AI is an initialism formed from the first letters of 'artificial intelligence' (a term coined in 1956 at a Dartmouth College workshop) and 'artificial insemination.' The sloth sense (4) comes from Portuguese 'aí,' borrowed from the Tupi word 'aɨ́,' which imitates the animal's high-pitched cry.

First known use

1625

1625, in the meaning defined above Abbreviation Or Noun