autocomplete

[ aw-toh-kuhm-pleet ]

verb (used with object)

, au·to·com·plet·ed, au·to·com·plet·ing.

1. to complete (a sequence of characters) in a text field in a digital document or app: Compare auto-populate ( def ).

   Why would this library app autocomplete a book’s title if they don’t have it?!

2. sometimes used interchangeably with autofill ( def 1 ).

noun

1. a feature of a messaging app, word processor, email program, web browser, etc., that automatically predicts the remaining characters in a word or phrase based on what has been typed or input before:

   Using autocomplete makes typing on my phone’s tiny keyboard so much faster.

Other Words From

• au·to·com·ple·tion noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of autocomplete¹

First recorded in 1990–95; auto- ³( def ) + complete ( def )

Example Sentences

Harris was on-hand to take part in the outlet's “Autocomplete Interviews” series, in which celebs respond to popular search queries that follow their name.

From Salon

In the coming months, GitHub also will let engineers use their employer’s own codebase to help autocomplete programs they’re working on, Dohmke said.

From Seattle Times

We take editing tools such as spell-check and autocomplete and predictive texting for granted.

From Scientific American

On the one hand, if you use Microsoft Outlook or Gmail, you’ve already been seeing a lot of autocomplete when you write e-mails.

From Scientific American

Many people rely on a version of this technology whenever they use the “autocomplete” feature when composing text messages or emails.

From Seattle Times