mechanical

[muh-kan-i-kuh l]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR mechanical ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

having to do with machinery: a mechanical failure.

being a machine; operated by machinery: a mechanical toy.

caused by or derived from machinery: mechanical propulsion.

using machine parts only.

brought about by friction, abrasion, etc.: a mechanical bond between stones; mechanical erosion.

pertaining to the design, use, understanding, etc., of tools and machinery: the mechanical trades; mechanical ability.

acting or performed without spontaneity, spirit, individuality, etc.: a mechanical performance.

habitual; routine; automatic: Practice that step until it becomes mechanical.

belonging or pertaining to the subject matter of mechanics.

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

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

subordinating the spiritual to the material; materialistic.

noun

a mechanical object, part, device, etc.

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

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

Origin of mechanical

1375–1425; late Middle English, equivalent to mechanic mechanical + -al¹; see mechanic

Related formsme·chan·i·cal·ly, adverbme·chan·i·cal·ness, me·chan·i·cal·i·ty, nounnon·me·chan·i·cal, adjectivenon·me·chan·i·cal·ly, adverbnon·me·chan·i·cal·ness, nounqua·si-me·chan·i·cal, adjectivequa·si-me·chan·i·cal·ly, adverbsem·i·me·chan·i·cal, adjectivesu·per·me·chan·i·cal, adjectivesu·per·me·chan·i·cal·ly, adverbun·me·chan·i·cal, adjectiveun·me·chan·i·cal·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for mechanically

regularly

Examples from the Web for mechanically

Contemporary Examples of mechanically

“Keeping in contact with those people, and mechanically getting them to the trial, those are the hard parts,” Risner said.
Drug Smuggler Sues U.S. Over Dog Bite
Caitlin Dickson
December 10, 2014
What about allowing a school to manually or "mechanically" restrain students?
Bill Maher Finds the Worst Congressman in America
Ana Marie Cox
October 8, 2014
“First we targeted the tanks and the jeeps with IEDs,” he said mechanically, as if recalling a combat briefing.
Did Israel Execute Jihadists in Gaza?
Jesse Rosenfeld
September 7, 2014
This process can be mechanically assisted by deep belly massages and, yes, colonic irrigation.
My Week At An Austrian Fat Camp
Owen Matthews
October 27, 2013
It is simply unrealistic to say that judges can decide every case by mechanically applying a rigid algorithm.
Chief Justice John Roberts’s Ruling Restores Faith in the Court’s Neutrality
Laurence Tribe
June 28, 2012

Historical Examples of mechanically

Mechanically, you raise your hand to lift away your optimistic spectacles.
De Libris: Prose and Verse
Austin Dobson
Then, mechanically, his hand went to the lamp on the table back of the couch.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
Before she had repeated them mechanically, for not until now did she need them.
Rico and Wiseli
Johanna Spyri
Mechanically she took from the wardrobe a hooded cloak, put it about her, and left the room.
In the Valley
Harold Frederic
They halted, mechanically and abruptly; every eye was turned to the beloved scene.
Leila, Complete
Edward Bulwer-Lytton

British Dictionary definitions for mechanically

mechanical

adjective

made, performed, or operated by or as if by a machine or machinerya mechanical process

concerned with machines or machinery

relating to or controlled or operated by physical forces

of or concerned with mechanics

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

philosophy accounting for phenomena by physically determining forces

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

noun

printing another name for camera-ready copy

archaic another word for mechanic (def. 2)

Derived Formsmechanicalism, nounmechanically, adverbmechanicalness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for mechanically

mechanical

adj.

early 15c., "of or pertaining to machines," from mechanic (adj.) + -al (1); of persons or human actions, "resembling machines, automatic" it is from c.1600. Related: Mechanically. Mechanical-minded is recorded from 1820.

mechanically in Medicine

mechanical

[mĭ-kăn′ĭ-kəl]

adj.

Operated or produced by a mechanism or machine.

Relating to, produced by, or dominated by physical forces.

Interpreting and explaining the phenomena of the universe by referring to causally determined material forces; mechanistic.