1. An individual who writes and debugs computer programs. Depending on the size of the project and the work environment, a programmer might work alone or as part of a team, be involved in part or all of the process from design through completion, or write all or a portion of the program. See also program.
2. In hardware, a device used to program read-only memory chips. See also PROM, ROM (definition 2). A person who designs and writes and tests computer programs; SYN. computer programmer, software engineer.
Job classification for computer personnel. Programmers write the software needed for any new computer system or application.