# procedure

Pronunciation: US say "pruh-SEE-jur" /pɹəˈsid͡ʒɚ/; UK say "pruh-SEE-juh" /pɹəˈsiːd͡ʒə/

## Noun

1. A series of small tasks or steps carried out to accomplish a particular goal.
   - Simple: A set of small steps you follow to get something done.
   - _Assembling the bookshelf turned out to be a straightforward procedure._
   - _She walked the new hires through the procedure for closing the store at night._
2. A particular method or technique used for performing a task.
   - Simple: One particular way of doing a job or task.
   - _Each lab has its own procedure for calibrating the instruments._
   - _She developed a clever procedure for sorting the files quickly._
3. The set of established forms and methods that an organization follows to accomplish its tasks.
   - Simple: The official set of rules an organization uses to get things done.
   - _Parliamentary procedure governs how motions are debated and voted on._
   - _The committee revised its procedure for approving new members._
4. A surgical operation carried out on a patient, often in a hospital or clinic.
   - Simple: A medical operation done by a doctor on a patient's body.
   - _The surgeon described the procedure as routine and low-risk._
   - _Patients usually go home the same day after this minor procedure._
5. The series of steps taken in a lawsuit or other legal proceeding.
   - Simple: The steps that are followed in a court case or legal action.
   - _The judge insisted that proper procedure be followed at every stage._
   - _Appeals follow a separate procedure from the original trial._
6. A named block of program code that performs a specific task without returning a value.
   - Simple: A block of computer code that does a task but gives back no answer.
   - _The procedure updates the database and then logs the change._
   - _Each procedure handles one step of the setup routine._

## Noun

7. Something that results from a process; an outcome, issue, or product. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: The thing that comes out of something as its result or product.

## Origin

From French procédure, which came through Old French from Latin procedere ("to go forward, proceed").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/procedure (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).