computing

IPA/kəmˈpjuːtɪŋ/
KK[kəmpjˈutɪŋ]IPA/kəmˈpjuːtɪŋ/

computing — noun

1. the activity of working with computers, or the academic subject that studies how

1.nounB1
Definition

the activity of working with computers, or the academic subject that studies how computers and software are designed and used.

Example

Beatriz is studying computing at the University of Edinburgh.

study + computing for the academic subject

Cloud computing lets a small bakery store all its orders online.

compound: cloud computing

Common collocations
  • study computing
  • teach computing
  • computing course
  • computing skills
  • computing power
  • cloud computing
  • mobile computing
  • quantum computing
Synonyms
  • information technology

    broader; covers networks, support, and hardware as well as software

  • computer science

    narrower and more academic; the theory and mathematics behind computing

  • IT

    everyday short form of information technology, common in job titles and departments

Grammar Patterns

uncountable: study/work in computing

noun + noun: computing course / skills / power

modifier compounds: cloud computing, mobile computing

Usage Note

Almost always uncountable, so it takes no article and has no plural form. Frequently appears as the first half of a compound (computing course, computing skills, computing power, cloud computing) rather than standing alone.

Common Mistakes

Sora is taking three computings this term.
Sora is taking three computing courses this term.
computing is uncountable; add a counter noun like course, class, or module.
Shirin works in the computing.
Shirin works in computing.
drop the article before this uncountable noun when naming the field.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words describe work involving computers, but they sit at different points on a scale from theory to practice. Computer science is the most academic: it focuses on algorithms, data structures, and the mathematics behind software, and is the usual name of a university degree. Computing is broader and a little more everyday — it can mean the field, the activity, or the use of computers, as in cloud computing or computing skills. Information technology, often shortened to IT, leans toward the practical business side: installing systems, supporting users, and running networks inside an organisation. So a researcher might publish in computer science, a student might major in computing, and a company employee usually works in IT or asks the IT department to fix the printer.

computing ↗computer science ↗information technologyIT ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • computing course
  • computing skills
  • computing power
  • computing department
  • computing industry

Phrases

  • cloud computing
  • mobile computing
  • quantum computing
  • high-performance computing
  • personal computing

Prepositions

  • in computing
  • into computing

Etymology

LatinMiddle FrenchEnglish

Computing comes from the verb compute, which English borrowed in the early 1600s from the Latin computare, meaning 'to count up' or 'to reckon together' (com- 'together' + putare 'to think, count'). For centuries it referred to any kind of calculation done by hand or with mechanical aids. The modern sense — work done with electronic computers — grew up in the 1940s and 1950s alongside the first programmable machines, and is now the everyday meaning of the word.