routine
/ruːˈtiːn/ (bre, ipa) · /ruːˈtiːn/ (ame, ipa) · /rü-ˈtēn/ (ame, mw)
routine — noun
- routinesingular
- routinesplural
1. the set of things a person does regularly at the same time or in the same order,
the set of things a person does regularly at the same time or in the same order, especially as part of day-to-day life
Nia follows the same morning routine — coffee first, then a short jog in the park.
collocation: morning routine / daily routine
The hospital introduced a new safety routine that all nurses must follow before any operation.
collocation: safety routine / introduce a routine
Dario's workout routine includes stretching, running, and weight training at the gym.
Shirin's skincare routine has three steps: cleanse, tone, and moisturise every night.
- spontaneity
doing things without a fixed plan
用法筆記
Commonly paired with morning, daily, exercise, or safety to specify the type of repeated activities. Verbs like follow, establish, develop, and stick to are frequent collocates.
常見錯誤
2. a prepared sequence of physical actions, spoken jokes, or other material that a
a prepared sequence of physical actions, spoken jokes, or other material that a performer uses repeatedly as part of a show or competition
The comedian's opening routine about airport delays had the whole audience laughing.
collocation: opening routine / comedy routine
Shirin practised her dance routine for months before the regional competition.
collocation: dance routine
Théo added a new trick to his magic routine for the final show.
The dance crew performed their competition routine flawlessly at the national finals.
用法筆記
Often modified by a genre word (comedy, dance, magic, exercise) that tells what kind of performance it is. A routine may be repeated across many shows.
3. a block of code inside software that carries out one particular task whenever th
a block of code inside software that carries out one particular task whenever the program runs
Imani wrote a routine that automatically backs up the database every hour.
computing terminology: write a routine / backup routine
A sorting routine organises the list of customer names before the report is printed.
Reema found a bug in the error-handling routine that caused the program to crash.
Christopher updated the login routine to require a two-step verification code.
- subroutine
a routine called from within another routine; more precise in computing
- function
modern term for a named block of code that returns a value
- procedure
a routine that performs an action without necessarily returning a value
用法筆記
Most common in technical and programming contexts. In everyday conversation, program or function is used instead. The related term subroutine is also common in older programming textbooks.
routine — adjective
- routinepositive
- more routinecomparative
- most routinesuperlative
1. carried out because it is the standard way of operating, not because a special s
carried out because it is the standard way of operating, not because a special situation demands it
The police officer made a routine traffic stop and noticed the broken tail light immediately.
collocation: routine traffic stop / routine check
All passengers passed through a routine security check before boarding the flight to Osaka.
Asher said the X-ray was just a routine check-up with nothing to worry about.
The airline requires pilots to complete a routine pre-flight inspection before every departure.
- special
done for a particular, non-standard reason
文法句型
routine + noun
用法筆記
Applied to actions carried out by policy or custom — they happen regularly but not necessarily every day. Unlike the noun routine, this adjective does not describe a personal habit.
常見錯誤
2. having no special or remarkable qualities; of the ordinary kind that one would n
having no special or remarkable qualities; of the ordinary kind that one would normally expect
The hotel room was clean but entirely routine — nothing about it stood out.
pattern: entirely routine (intensifier before adjective)
Esme said the maths test was routine and that she had seen similar questions before.
For David, changing a flat tyre is a routine job that takes around twenty minutes.
Mizuki described the interview as routine — nothing in the questions caught her off guard.
- ordinary
broad term for what is usual and expected
- commonplace
slightly more formal; suggests the thing is very frequently encountered
- unremarkable
emphasises the lack of anything worth noticing
- remarkable
worth noticing or unusual
- exceptional
much better or more special than usual
用法筆記
Carries a neutral tone — something routine in this sense is unremarkable but not necessarily boring. Distinguish from sense 3 (BORINGLY PREDICTABLE), which adds a negative judgement.
3. so repetitious and lacking in variety that it becomes dull or tiresome
so repetitious and lacking in variety that it becomes dull or tiresome
Antonia quit because the daily tasks grew too routine — the same boring work each morning.
pattern: become + routine (negative connotation)
The film had a routine plot that Soraya had seen in many other action movies.
Beatriz found the weekly meetings dreadfully routine, with the same reports each month.
Adina felt her life had grown routine — the same commute and meetings day after day.
- monotonous
emphasises lack of change in tone or pace
- tedious
focuses on the slowness and tiresome length of the activity
- humdrum
suggests a flat, unexciting quality throughout
文法句型
become + routine
too + routine
用法筆記
More negative than sense 2 (NOT UNUSUAL). This sense focuses on boredom caused by repetition. Often follows become or grow: the work grew routine. Intensifiers like too, dreadfully, and painfully are common.