Wordul · all words

noun · 2 syllables · /'mæk.roʊ/

MACRO

What does "MACRO" mean?

A single instruction that expands automatically into a set of operations; also a prefix meaning large-scale.

Meanings

  1. A recorded sequence of commands or keystrokes that runs as one instruction in software. She wrote a macro to format the whole report in one click. technical
  2. Large-scale; concerned with the big picture (short for 'macroscopic' or 'macroeconomic'). Zoom out to the macro view before you fix the small stuff.
  3. A macronutrient (protein, carbohydrate, or fat), in diet and fitness slang. He weighs his food to hit his macros. informal
  4. Macro photography, or a lens for extreme close-ups. She shot the dewdrop with a macro and filled the frame. technical

Did you know?

  • 'Macro' is one of the rare words that means both 'huge in scale' (macroeconomics, the macro view) and 'extreme close-up' (macro photography). The Greek root 'makros' just meant 'large' - in a macro photo, a tiny subject is made large.

Word origin

From Greek 'makros', 'long, large'; the computing sense (a single command standing for many) was coined in mid-20th-century programming, extending the 'large' idea to 'one thing that expands into many'.

Remember it

MACRO = MAX-scale: think 'macro is the max, micro is the min.'

A little poem

One keystroke fires the hundred I'd have typed-
the macro does the labor I've outgripped.

couplet

Wordplay

  • I wrote a macro to automate my whole job, then spent the saved time debugging the macro. Net zero, but at the macro level I felt productive.

What it teaches

Master the macro and the micro; the big picture without the details is a slogan, the details without the picture are noise.

Quick facts

What does MACRO mean?

A single instruction that expands automatically into a set of operations; also a prefix meaning large-scale.

Is MACRO a valid word?

Yes — MACRO is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.

How many letters is MACRO?

MACRO has 5 letters and 2 syllables.

Where does MACRO come from?

From Greek 'makros', 'long, large'; the computing sense (a single command standing for many) was coined in mid-20th-century programming, extending the 'large' idea to 'one thing that expands into many'.

What can MACRO teach us?

Master the macro and the micro; the big picture without the details is a slogan, the details without the picture are noise.

How players do

Be the first to solve it.

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