bootstrap

Meanings

Noun

• A loop (leather or other material) sewn at the side or top rear of a boot to help in pulling the boot on.
• A means of advancing oneself or accomplishing something without aid.
• The process by which the operating system of a computer is loaded into its memory.
• The process necessary to compile the tools that will be used to compile the rest of the system or program.
• Any method or instance of estimating properties of an estimator (such as its variance) by measuring those properties when sampling from an approximating distribution.

Verb

• To help (oneself) without the aid of others.
• To load the operating system into the memory of a computer. Usually shortened to boot.
• To compile the tools that will be used to compile the rest of the system or program.
• To employ a bootstrap method.
• To expand or advance an activity or a collection based solely on previous actions, work, findings, etc.

Origin

• From boot + strap. The sense "pull up (without aid)" comes from the phrase pull oneself up by one's bootstraps.