engineer
Americannoun
-
a person trained and skilled in the design, construction, and use of engines or machines, or in any of various branches of engineering.
a mechanical engineer; a civil engineer.
-
a person who operates or is in charge of an engine.
-
Also called locomotive engineer. Railroads. a person who operates or is in charge of a locomotive.
-
a member of an army, navy, or air force specially trained in engineering work.
-
Digital Technology. a person skilled in the design and programming of computer systems.
a software engineer;
a web engineer.
-
a skillful manager.
a political engineer.
verb (used with object)
-
to plan, construct, or manage as an engineer.
He's engineered several big industrial projects.
-
to design or create using the techniques or methods of engineering.
The motor has been engineered to run noiselessly.
-
to arrange, manage, or carry through by skillful or artful contrivance.
He certainly engineered the election campaign beautifully.
noun
-
a person trained in any branch of the profession of engineering
-
the originator or manager of a situation, system, etc
-
a mechanic; person who repairs or services machines
-
the driver of a railway locomotive
-
an officer responsible for a ship's engines
-
Informal name: sapper. a member of the armed forces, esp the army, trained in engineering and construction work
verb
-
to originate, cause, or plan in a clever or devious manner
he engineered the minister's downfall
-
to design, plan, or construct as a professional engineer
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
engineersimple
-
engineerssimple
-
have engineeredperfect
-
has engineeredperfect
-
am engineeringprogressive
-
are engineeringprogressive
-
is engineeringprogressive
-
have been engineeringperfect progressive
-
has been engineeringperfect progressive
Past
-
engineeredsimple
-
had engineeredperfect
-
was engineeringprogressive
-
were engineeringprogressive
-
had been engineeringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of engineer
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; engine + -eer; replacing Middle English engin(e)our, from Anglo-French engineor, Old French engigneor, from Medieval Latin ingeniātor, from ingeniā(re) “to design, devise” (derivative of ingenium “nature, innate quality, mental power, clever invention”; engine ) + Latin -tor -tor
Explanation
An engineer is someone who possesses the knowledge or expertise to create and implement plans or build machines. Even if you're not an engineer, when you engineer you make plans and solve problems. An interesting part of the word engineer is the suffix -eer, which turns a word into one that means someone who does something indicated by the base it is affixed to — a mountaineer climbs mountains, an auctioneer presides at auctions, an engineer designs, coming from the Old French engin, which means "skill or cleverness." If you want to become an engineer, you'll have to study all kinds of mechanical systems, not just engines.
Vocabulary lists containing engineer
Beam Me Up: Talking About Star Trek
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"Kids Are Inventors, Too"
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 4
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
But the piece also reflected feelings Valdez had about his long-estranged brother Frank, an engineer whose alienating efforts to deny his own background and fit in formed a heavy undercurrent in Valdez’s life.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
As for the long-germinating version of the records included, credit goes to celebrated audio engineer Doug Benson.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
Wangchuk has had a long career as an engineer and innovator - and has a long history of challenging the status quo.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
In a separate set of experiments, environmental engineer Dr. Amit Kumar combined cold atmospheric plasma with gas dispersion to destroy PFAS.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 20, 2026
At the outbreak of World War II, Hans joined the US Army as a captain, working as a mining engineer.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
Both programs will employ forward deployed engineers who work onsite with clients to plan and build AI applications.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
For example, engineers who want to create a longer signal delay or work with a different frequency range often need to design and manufacture an entirely new photonic device.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 22, 2026
Six months before every tour stop, someone from Shuck’s team visits to survey the theater building and meet with structural engineers to ensure the structural steel mount can support its weight and dynamic force.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
We're talking the likes of nurses, midwives, paramedics, teachers, and engineers.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
The engineers helped too, bringing needed supplies and food with them.
From "Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam" by Elizabeth Partridge
Although HiRIC's exposure time has not been released publicly, the camera was engineered for precise timing and rapid operation.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 24, 2026
A new class of American-developed drugs, oral biomimetic engineered cyclic peptides, or eCPs, can in some cases replicate the therapeutic function of an injected biologic in pill form without replicating its complex structure.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
To improve the process, Dai, Jin Geng, Dianpeng Qi and colleagues engineered Bacillus subtilis to produce two polymer-degrading enzymes that work together.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 17, 2026
Maria Theresa engineered advantageous marriages for her daughters.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026
It was Elizebeth who engineered their final breakout.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
To critics who dismiss the project as "garage engineering" or amateurism, Terekh says she is "very proud" of their roots.
From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026
"The demonstration mission will set the stage before our next giant leap. NASA's expertise in systems engineering and integration, as well as launch and mission operations in low Earth orbit, will bring the mission together."
From Science Daily ● Jul. 23, 2026
The singer also revealed she’s working on new music and going to school for audio engineering, which she said she’s “always wanted to learn.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
That was true for Manit, an 18-year-old engineering student.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
Somebody in Illinois must have studied engineering at a regular school.
From "100 Sideways Miles" by Andrew Smith
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
