factory

[fak-tuh-ree, -tree]

noun

plural

factories 

1. a building or group of buildings with facilities for the manufacture of goods.

2. any place producing a uniform product, without concern for individuality.

   They call it a law school, but it's just a degree factory.

3. (formerly) an establishment for factors and merchants carrying on business in a foreign country.

factory

/ ˈfæktərɪ /

noun

1. 1. a building or group of buildings containing a plant assembly for the manufacture of goods

   2. ( as modifier )

      a factory worker

2. rare,  a trading station maintained by factors in a foreign country

3. (formerly) a main trading station for the exchange and transshipment of furs

Other Word Forms

• factorylike adjective
• subfactory noun
• factory-like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of factory¹

From the Medieval Latin word factōria, dating back to 1550–60. See factor, -y ³

Word History and Origins

Origin of factory¹

C16: from Late Latin factorium ; see _factor

Example Sentences

Output in factories in Europe’s largest economy sank 4.3% on month, Germany’s statistics agency Destatis said Wednesday, considerably weaker than consensus expectations from economists polled by The Wall Street Journal of a 1.0% decline.

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The IMF chief said China should spend more on cleaning up its property sector and providing a backstop for households, and “much less” on subsidizing its factories.

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The new industrialization of Silicon Valley, meanwhile, happened with nonunionized labor forces, whose own factories would close by the end of the 1980s.

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If you want to base yourself out of the region’s hub, La Crosse, a good option is the Charmant Hotel, a former candy factory, which combines comfy digs with sensational cocktails on the Mississippi River.

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“Our vision is simple: we want to create a factory that can produce a gigawatt of new AI infrastructure every week,” Altman wrote in a recent blog.

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Related Words

• branch 
• cooperative 
• firm 
• industry 
• laboratory 
• mill 
• shop 
• workshop