Unprogram

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To modify or change the programming of a system or device
2. To remove or negate previous set instructions or settings from a machine or software
3. Pertaining to the act of restoring a system to an unconfigured state by erasing existing commands or operations

Etymology: "Unprogram" is a verb formed by adding the reversing prefix "un-" to "program," and the word is a straightforward modern formation, so its history is plain. "Program" itself entered English in the early 1600s, borrowed through Latin "programma" from Greek "prographein," meaning "to write publicly" or "to write beforehand." The sense of a sequence of instructions for a machine arrived only in the twentieth century, when computing made the term common. The "un-" prefix is Old English in origin and has been productive for centuries, attaching to verbs such as "unlock," "unpack," and "unbolt" to mean reversing or undoing an action. Adding it to "program" follows that pattern, so "unprogram" carries the sense of removing or undoing instructions previously set in a device. Because the word is a recent technical coinage, it is most commonly found in computing and electronics contexts, where it is used alongside more familiar phrases like "reprogram" or "clear the settings."

Synonyms: deprogram, erase, delete, reset, clear

Antonyms: program, install, set up