COBOL

noun

CO·​BOL ˈkō-ˌbȯl 

variants or Cobol

: a computer programming language designed for business applications

Examples of COBOL in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Many legacy systems in financial institutions rely on COBOL, Java or C++, and Rust’s FFI (foreign function interface) support enables gradual migration without requiring a complete overhaul. —Amandeep Midha, Forbes, 19 Mar. 2025

The confusion has arisen from the SSA's software system, which relies on the COBOL programming language and lacks a specific date type. —Faisal Kutty, Newsweek, 11 Mar. 2025

The news organization Wired first reported on the use of COBOL programming language at the Social Security Administration. —Jeremy Tanner, The Hill, 6 Mar. 2025

This means maintaining talent that understands legacy COBOL and modern cloud architectures. —Ismail Amla, Forbes, 8 Jan. 2025

This early achievement would one day lead to the development of COBOL for data processors, which is still the major programming language used today. —Ars Technica, 29 Aug. 2024

Much of the New York City subway depends on mechanical switching systems installed in the nineteen-thirties; many banks rely on software written in COBOL, a basically obsolete programming language. —Joshua Rothman, The New Yorker, 29 Oct. 2024

The new system, which requires a porting of COBOL and Assembly code into Java, is intended to be more modern and sustainable moving forward. —Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024

Her innovations were later folded into COBOL, the language of banking and backend systems. —Clive Thompson, WIRED, 29 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

common business oriented language

First Known Use

1960, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

COBOL

noun

CO·​BOL

variants or Cobol

ˈkō-ˌbȯl 

: a computer programming language used especially in business

Etymology

common business oriented language