inputs

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of input.

   Engineers measured the energy inputs at several stages of the process.

   The model weighs many inputs before predicting tomorrow's weather.

   Note

   A plural belongs to the countable side of input: separate quantities of energy, materials or data feeding a process, or several input jacks on one device. When input means advice or a contribution, it is often a mass noun, as in thanks for your input, and the singular is the natural choice. The same spelling also serves as the present-tense verb: she inputs the figures each morning.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present indicative of input.

   The technician inputs the test results into the shared database.

   Whenever a sensor trips, the controller inputs the timestamp to the log.

   Note

   The subject can sit on either side of the keyboard. A person inputs data into a system, but a system can also be said to input data in the sense of accepting what is entered. So the controller inputs the timestamp is as natural as the technician inputs the results. In both uses the verb takes a direct object, while the intransitive use simply means to put in.

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