erasable programmable read-only memory
- noun
- /ɪˈreɪsəbl ˈprɒɡrəˌməbəl ˈriːd ˈoʊnli ˈmɛməri/
- Specialized
:
memoria de solo lectura programable borrable
- The system used 24 I/O ports, 32 kB of RAM, and 2 MB of memory on an EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory).
Examples
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The engineer explained how the erasable programmable read-only memory can be rewritten multiple times using ultraviolet light.
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With the erasable programmable read-only memory, we were able to update the firmware of our device swiftly.
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The latest model includes erasable programmable read-only memory that allows users to store and modify their data easily.
Synonyms
1
8.0
A computer memory chip you erase with ultraviolet light and then reprogram with new data
How Writable
- Specialized
- Specialized
3
4.2
- Specialized
- Specialized
1
4.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
erasable + programmable + read-only + memory
The phrase is largely built compositionally: a B1 learner who knows 'erasable', 'programmable', 'read-only' and 'memory' can infer it refers to a kind of memory that can be erased and reprogrammed despite normally being read-only. However, the technical details (e.g. the ultraviolet erasure method and the apparent contradiction between 'read-only' and 'programmable') require domain-specific knowledge, so the full, precise meaning is not entirely predictable from the words alone.
Etymology
Erasable programmable read-only memory comes from early computer chips that could be 'erased' by a special bright ultraviolet light and then 'programmed' again, while the computer would mostly 'read' their contents. So the name simply says what the chip does: erasable (can be cleared), programmable (can be written), read-only (the computer reads it), and memory (it stores information).