catalog

1 of 2

noun

cat·​a·​log ˈka-tə-ˌlȯg How to pronounce catalog (audio)
-ˌläg
variants or catalogue
1
: list, register
a catalog of the band's songs
2
a
: a complete enumeration of items arranged systematically with descriptive details
a catalog of the company's products
b
: a pamphlet or book that contains such a list
a mail-order catalog
a university catalog
c
: material in such a list

catalog

2 of 2

verb

variants or catalogue
cataloged or catalogued; cataloging or cataloguing

transitive verb

1
: to make a catalog of
catalog a collection of books
2
a
: to enter in a catalog
b
: to classify (something, such as books or information) descriptively
Scientific monographs are cataloged into a database that will be available to researchers.

intransitive verb

1
: to make or work on a catalog
2
: to become listed in a catalog at a specified price
this stamp catalogs at $2
cataloger noun
or cataloguer

Examples of catalog in a Sentence

Noun The band played many songs from their catalog of hits. a catalog of music album titles Verb They use the computer to catalog books. The chart catalogs the results of each test.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Some of us circled the toys and left the catalog open to strategic pages for all to see. Dawn Mitchell, The Enquirer, 26 Dec. 2024 Considered one of the best and most prolific songwriters of all time, Dylan sold 100% of his song catalog to Universal Music Publishing Group in a deal that was reportedly worth $400 million. Lissete Lanuza Sáenz, StyleCaster, 24 Dec. 2024
Verb
Other states seem to be taking inspiration from Wisconsin—Minnesota, Michigan and others have started cataloging their own canoe archives—while the Society for American Archaeology devoted a symposium last year entirely to the humble dugout. Jacqueline Kehoe, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Dec. 2024 These new bots swarm websites not to catalog content but to feed that content to AI, a technology that threatens to replace search as the default means of online discovery (and does so by digesting and regurgitating the content in a monstrous, unciteable form). Longreads, 19 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for catalog 

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English cathaloge, cateloge, from Middle French catalogue, from Late Latin catalogus, from Greek katalogos, from katalegein to list, enumerate, from kata- + legein to gather, speak — more at legend

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1598, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of catalog was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near catalog

Cite this Entry

“Catalog.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/catalog. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025.

Kids Definition

catalog

1 of 2 noun
cat·​a·​log
variants or catalogue
1
: a list of names, titles, or articles arranged according to a system
2
: a book or file containing a catalog

catalog

2 of 2 verb
variants or catalogue
cataloged or catalogued; cataloging or cataloguing
1
: to make a catalog of
2
: to enter in a catalog
catalog books
cataloger noun
or cataloguer
-ˈȯ-gər,
-ˈä-gər

More from Merriam-Webster on catalog

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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