industrial revolution

[in-duhs-tree-uhl rev-uh-loo-shuhn]

noun

1. none the industrial revolution or the Industrial Revolution the totality of the changes in economic and social organization that began about 1760 in England and later in other countries, characterized chiefly by the replacement of hand tools with power-driven machines, such as the power loom and the steam engine, and by the concentration of industry in large establishments.

2. any period of change to the economic and social organization of a country, region, etc., that is characterized by the replacement of hand tools with power-driven machines and the concentration of industry in large establishments.

Industrial Revolution

noun

1. the transformation in the 18th and 19th centuries of first Britain and then other W European countries and the US into industrial nations

Industrial Revolution

1. The rapid industrial growth that began in England during the middle of the eighteenth century and then spread over the next 50 years to many other countries, including the United States. The revolution depended on devices such as the steam engine (see James Watt), which were invented at a rapidly increasing rate during the period. The Industrial Revolution brought on a rapid concentration of people in cities and changed the nature of work for many people. (See Luddites.)

Word History and Origins

Origin of Industrial Revolution¹

First recorded in 1840–50

Example Sentences

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang stated that demand for AI and its Blackwell chip is exponentially high, signaling a new industrial revolution.

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“I think we’re at the beginning of a new buildout, beginning of a new industrial revolution.”

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Song China was so successful that some economic historians have argued it came close to unleashing an industrial revolution 400 years before Britain did.

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“We are at the beginning of an industrial revolution that will change every industry.”

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“I think we’re at the beginning of a new build out, the beginning of a new industrial revolution. And it’s going to be exciting times,” Huang said.

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