Longlisting

Part of speech: noun, verb

Definitions

1. The process of creating or compiling an extended list of candidates, items, or entries for consideration in selection or evaluation procedures
2. The act of assembling a preliminary, extensive register of potential choices or nominees from which shorter, final selections will be made
3. The procedure of forming a broad collection of options or contenders to be reviewed before narrowing down to a final group or decision

Etymology: "Longlisting" is the present participle and gerund of "longlist", a verb formed from "long" and "list". The pairing is entirely transparent: a list that is long, meaning one that is extended, comes before a shorter shortlist. The word describes the stage of a selection process where a wide pool of candidates is gathered for later narrowing. The verb "longlist" was formed by compounding the two plain English words "long" and "list", with "long" in its ordinary sense of great in extent or length. "List" comes from Old English "līste", meaning a strip or border, which later came to mean a catalogue of names or items. Its use in the sense of a set of candidates is what makes "longlist" a natural pairing with the "shortlist" that follows it.

Synonyms: nominating