mechanical

American  

[muh-kan-i-kuhl] / məˈkæn ɪ kəl /

adjective

1. having to do with machinery.

   a mechanical failure.

2. being a machine; operated by machinery.

   a mechanical toy.

3. caused by or derived from machinery.

   mechanical propulsion.

4. using machine parts only.

5. brought about by friction, abrasion, etc..

   a mechanical bond between stones; mechanical erosion.

6. pertaining to the design, use, understanding, etc., of tools and machinery.

   the mechanical trades; mechanical ability.

7. acting or performed without spontaneity, spirit, individuality, etc..

   a mechanical performance.

8. habitual; routine; automatic.

   Practice that step until it becomes mechanical.

9. belonging or pertaining to the subject matter of mechanics.

10. pertaining to, or controlled or effected by, physical forces.

11. (of a philosopher or philosophical theory) explaining phenomena as due to mechanical action or the material forces of the universe.

12. subordinating the spiritual to the material; materialistic.

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noun

1. a mechanical object, part, device, etc.

2. Printing. a sheet of stiff paper on which has been pasted artwork and type proofs for making a printing plate; paste-up.

3. Obsolete. a skilled manual laborer, as a carpenter or other artisan.

mechanical British  

/ mɪˈkænɪkəl /

adjective

1. made, performed, or operated by or as if by a machine or machinery

   a mechanical process

2. concerned with machines or machinery

3. relating to or controlled or operated by physical forces

4. of or concerned with mechanics

5. (of a gesture, etc) automatic; lacking thought, feeling, etc

6. philosophy accounting for phenomena by physically determining forces

7. (of paper, such as newsprint) made from pulp that has been mechanically ground and contains impurities

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noun

1. printing another name for camera-ready copy

2. archaic another word for mechanic

Other Word Forms

• mechanicalism
  noun
• mechanicality
  noun
• mechanicalness
  noun
• nonmechanicalness
  noun
• nonmechanical
  adjective
• quasi-mechanical
  adjective
• semimechanical
  adjective
• supermechanical
  adjective
• unmechanical
  adjective
• mechanically
  adverb
• nonmechanically
  adverb
• quasi-mechanically
  adverb
• supermechanically
  adverb
• unmechanically
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of mechanical

1375–1425; late Middle English, equivalent to mechanic mechanical + -al ¹; see mechanic

Explanation

Use the adjective mechanical to describe something related to machinery or tools. If your car breaks down on the same day that your watch stops, you've got a lot of mechanical problems. You’ll most often hear mechanical used to describe something involving a machine. A mechanical problem at work might mean the copier has broken down again. Mechanical can also refer to physical forces, called mechanics having to do with how things move, like the mechanical elegance of a pendulum. We also use mechanical for human things that are so tedious, repetitive or automatic that they feel like they're done by machines and not people.

Example Sentences

Roper, who is originally from Lancashire, started his own milk round at 21 and ran it for 10 years before returning to education to study mechanical engineering.

From BBC • Jul. 11, 2026

Philadelphia: Through the pioneering designs of inventor Oliver Evans, Philadelphia became a hub for the mechanical ice-making technology that stabilized the global food-supply chain.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 9, 2026

He is the provider for the family, and has two children in high school and a son studying mechanical engineering at Fresno City College whom he is supporting financially.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 9, 2026

Developing a complete quantum mechanical understanding of superconductivity is extraordinarily challenging, making the search for new superconducting materials slow and computationally demanding.

From Science Daily • Jul. 7, 2026

Even when your plane is flying in a windless sky, a mechanical failure can make it difficult or impossible to fly.

From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein

Related Words

• automated
• automatic