bot

1 of 3

noun (1)

ˈbät 

1

: robot

Bennett's referring to … a new police robot. It looks similar to the Albuquerque Bomb Squad robot next to it—both have cameras, an articulated arm, a mechanical gripper, and tank-like treads. But Benett's bot is different; it has brains.

—Popular Science

2

a

: a computer program that performs automatic repetitive tasks : agent sense 5

Several shopping "bots" will track down prices for on-line merchandise from a variety of vendors.

—Sam Vincent Meddis

especially : one designed to perform a malicious action

These bot programs churn away all day and night, prodding at millions of random IP addresses looking for holes to crawl through.

—Jennifer Tanaka

b

: a computer that has been infected with a bot and can be used for malicious purposes as part of a network of infected computers

These proxies then sent instructions to worker bots in set patterns, including templates for spam creation.

—Jeff Hecht

3

: a computer program or character (as in a game) designed to mimic the actions of a person

bot

2 of 3

noun (2)

variants or less commonly bott

: the larva of a botfly

especially : one infesting the horse

bot

3 of 3

abbreviation

1

botanical; botanist; botany

2

bottle

3

bottom

4

bought

Examples of bot in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Bot love is ‘just a fad’ The intersection between bots and romance is already ringing some alarm bells for the public. —Byeleanor Pringle, Fortune, 10 May 2024

In August 2023, the company formally launched Ernie bot, a generative AI chatbot similar to OpenAI’s ChatGPT. —Nicholas Gordon, Fortune Asia, 9 May 2024

But while many aquatic and flying examples can navigate three-dimensional environments, that often isn’t the case for bots relegated to walking, crawling, or rolling along the ground. —Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 8 May 2024

Tina Fey, Rachel Dratch, Will Forte, and Fred Armisen (playing a rather funny A.I. bot) all make appearances in various guises — as fictional characters rather than themselves. —Sarah Lyall, New York Times, 8 May 2024

But what are the emotional and societal consequences of relying on bots for support? —Krista Stevens, Longreads, 7 May 2024

Ask Penny for a deal, and the bot will return with information about eligible coupons. —Kara Peeler, Sunset Magazine, 2 May 2024

Russia is also spreading disinformation to damage President Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats in advance of the U.S. election, using fake online accounts and bots, NBC News has reported. —Dan De Luce, NBC News, 30 Apr. 2024

Oh, and some definite votes for Poe as a way to use all the bots in one place. Perplexity. —David Pierce, The Verge, 21 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

by shortening

Noun (2)

Middle English; akin to Dutch leverbot liver fluke

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1969, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

bot

1 of 2 noun

ˈbät

: the larva of a botfly

bot

2 of 2 noun

1

: robot

2

: a computer program that performs automatic, repetitive, and sometimes harmful tasks

3

: a computer program or character that mimics human actions

Medical Definition

bot

1 of 2 noun

variants also bott

ˈbät 

: the larva of a botfly

especially : one infesting the horse

bot

2 of 2 abbreviation

1

botanical; botanist; botany

2

bottle