# procedure

/pɹəˈsidʒɝ/ (US) · /pɹəsˈiːdʒɐ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/procedure
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 2. a medical operation

noun · CEFR B2

a medical treatment or operation performed by a doctor or surgeon.

For teachers: a specific surgical or diagnostic intervention performed on a patient.

- The doctor explained that the heart procedure would take about three hours.
- The surgical team performed a minimally invasive procedure to repair the damaged valve, significantly reducing the patient's recovery time.

### 3. legal or formal rules

noun · CEFR C1 · Formal

the formal rules used in a court of law or a large organization.

For teachers: the body of rules governing the conduct of business in a legislative, judicial, or administrative body.

- The lawyer argued that the police did not follow proper legal procedure during the arrest.
- Parliamentary procedure dictates that a motion must be seconded before it can be opened for general debate among the members.

### 4. computing code

noun · CEFR C1 · Technical

a part of a computer program that performs a specific task.

For teachers: a sequence of program instructions that perform a specific task, packaged as a unit.

- The programmer wrote a new procedure to handle the data backup every night.
- The main program calls a sorting procedure to organize the array before the final results are displayed to the user.

## Examples

- The hospital has a strict procedure for cleaning the rooms.
- The security procedure requires every visitor to show a photo ID and sign the guest book before entering the building.
- Standard operating procedures ensure that every technician follows the same safety protocols, minimizing the risk of human error during complex surgical interventions.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.