Meanings
plural punch cards · alternative punchcard
- A card that can have holes or notches cut in it, especially one for storing data, that can be sorted according to combinations of holes present or absent.
- historicalcomputingSuch a card, the size of a US dollar bill and having 80 columns of 12 rows, used in early mainframe computers.
Programming by typing C++ or Python yourself might eventually seem as ridiculous as issuing instructions in binary onto a punch card.
2023 November 13, James Somers, “A Coder Considers the Waning Days of the Craft”, in The New Yorker, →ISSNSynonyms: punched card, Hollerith card
Synonyms & antonyms
nounSuch a card, the size of a US dollar bill and having 80 columns of 12 rows, used in early mainframe computers.
card with holes or notches
More synonyms by meaning
nouna card on which data can be recorded in the form of punched holes
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
Bulgarian перфокарта
- перфокарта (perfokarta)card with have holes or notches used for storing data
Chinese Mandarin 打孔卡
- 打孔卡 (dǎkǒngkǎ)card with have holes or notches used for storing data
Czech děrný štítek
- děrný štítekcard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Danish hulkort
- hulkortcard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Dutch ponskaart
- ponskaartcard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Finnish reikäkortti
- reikäkortticard with have holes or notches used for storing data
French carte perforée
- carte perforéecard with have holes or notches used for storing data
German Lochkarte
- Lochkartecard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Hungarian lyukkártya
- lyukkártyacard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Icelandic gataspjald
- gataspjaldcard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Irish tollchárta
- tollchártacard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Italian scheda perforata
- scheda perforatacard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Japanese パンチカード
- パンチカード (panchi kādo)card with have holes or notches used for storing data
Lithuanian perfokorta
- perfokortacard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Polish karta dziurkowana
- karta dziurkowanacard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Portuguese cartão perfurado
- cartão perfuradocard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Romanian cartelă perforată
- cartelă perforatăcard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Russian перфока́рта
- перфока́рта (perfokárta)card with have holes or notches used for storing data
Swedish hålkort
- hålkortcard with have holes or notches used for storing data
Cite this entry
punch card. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/punch%20card
“punch card.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/punch%20card. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “punch card,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/punch%20card.
Source: punch card on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.