ISO

n. Stands for International Organization for Standardization. An organization that creates rules for how things should be made or done globally.

n. Abbreviation for International Organization for Standardization. An international standard-setting body composed of representatives from various national standards organizations.

“The factory follows ISO standards to ensure all their products are safe.”

“The company sought ISO 9001 certification to demonstrate their commitment to quality management systems and international operational consistency.”

Technical

n. A setting on a camera that controls how sensitive it is to light.

n. A numerical rating of the sensitivity of a camera's sensor or film to light, based on international standards.

“I had to increase the ISO because the room was very dark.”

“Shooting at a high ISO allowed the photographer to capture the movement in the dim jazz club, though it introduced significant digital noise.”

Technical

n. A single computer file that contains everything from a CD or DVD.

n. An archive file of an optical disc, containing the data from every written sector of an ISO 9660 file system.

“You can download the operating system as an ISO file and burn it to a USB.”

“The technician mounted the ISO directly to the virtual machine to begin the software installation without needing physical media.”

Technical

n. Stands for incentive stock option. A type of benefit where a company lets employees buy shares at a special price.

n. Abbreviation for incentive stock option. A type of statutory stock option that qualifies for preferential tax treatment in the United States.

“The startup offered me a salary plus a generous package of ISOs.”

“Employees must hold their ISOs for at least two years from the date of grant to qualify for long-term capital gains treatment.”

American English · Technical

prep. Stands for in search of. Used in online ads when you want to buy or find something.

prep. Abbreviation for in search of. Frequently used in classified advertisements and online marketplaces to indicate a desired item or service.

“I posted a message saying I was ISO a vintage record player.”

“The collector spent months browsing forums, eventually posting an ISO thread for the rare first-edition manuscript.”

Informal

n. A short way of saying isolation, often used in sports or medical contexts.

n. A clipping of isolation. Used in sports to describe a play where a player is isolated against a defender, or in medical contexts for quarantine.

“The basketball team ran an ISO play for their star player in the final minute.”

“After testing positive, the athlete was placed in ISO to prevent the virus from spreading to the rest of the squad.”

Informal · Slang