mechanism

[mek-uh-niz-uh m]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR mechanism ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an assembly of moving parts performing a complete functional motion, often being part of a large machine; linkage.

the agency or means by which an effect is produced or a purpose is accomplished.

machinery or mechanical appliances in general.

the structure or arrangement of parts of a machine or similar device, or of anything analogous.

the mechanical part of something; any mechanical device: the mechanism of a clock.

routine methods or procedures; mechanics: the mechanism of government.

mechanical execution, as in painting or music; technique.

the theory that everything in the universe is produced by matter in motion; materialism.Compare dynamism(def 1), vitalism(def 1).

Philosophy.

the view that all natural processes are explicable in terms of Newtonian mechanics.
the view that all biological processes may be described in physicochemical terms.

Psychoanalysis. the habitual operation and interaction of psychological forces within an individual that assist in interpreting or dealing with the physical or psychological environment.

Origin of mechanism

1655–65; < New Latin mēchanismus; Late Latin mēchanisma a contrivance < Greek mēchan(ḗ) machine + New Latin -ismus, Late Latin -isma -ism

Related formsmech·a·nis·mic, adjectivean·ti·mech·an·ism, noun

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

Related Words for mechanisms

instrument, tool, system, structure, agency, process, technique, operation, procedure, apparatus, innards, gadget, appliance, contrivance, motor, gimmick, works, doohickey, machinery, performance

Examples from the Web for mechanisms

Contemporary Examples of mechanisms

It is entirely possible for some of these mechanisms to be functioning while others have ceased.
What It’s Like to Wake Up Dead
Dr. Anand Veeravagu, MD, Tej Azad
November 21, 2014
The White House argues that most of the mechanisms already are in place to ensure these goals are carried out.
Obama and Xi Jinping Say They’ll Work Together to Save Environment
Ben Leung
November 12, 2014
Part of the alias and the disguise is masking racism with the mechanisms of large, diverse institutions.
How We Got to Ferguson—a Reading List
David Masciotra
August 23, 2014
That said, the mechanisms we have to pay for higher education are seriously broken.
The Exciting-but-Depressing Obama-Tumblr Student-Loan Summit
Kelly Williams Brown
June 11, 2014
But more research and further inquiry are critical to better understand the mechanisms of brain and spinal injury.
Electric Stimulation and Rigorous Physical Therapy Show Promise for Paralysis Patients
Dr. Anand Veeravagu, MD, Tej Azad
April 10, 2014

Historical Examples of mechanisms

The simple reason is that he has not had the mechanisms whereby he could do so.
The Farmer and His Community
Dwight Sanderson
We located four suits and helmets and the mechanisms to operate them.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science April 1930
Various
Near it was a series of mechanisms at whose purpose he could not even guess.
Raiders of the Universes
Donald Wandrei
Had someone gone out this way and broken the mechanisms after him?
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, May, 1930
Various
It seemed that Miko was now testing the use of all his mechanisms.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, June, 1930
Various

British Dictionary definitions for mechanisms

mechanism

noun

a system or structure of moving parts that performs some function, esp in a machine

something resembling a machine in the arrangement and working of its partsthe mechanism of the ear

any form of mechanical device or any part of such a device

a process or technique, esp of executionthe mechanism of novel writing

philosophy

the doctrine that human action can be explained in purely physical terms, whether mechanical or biological
the explanation of phenomena in causal rather than teleological or essentialist terms
the view that the task of science is to seek such explanations
strict determinismCompare dynamism, vitalism

psychoanal

the ways in which psychological forces interact and operate
a structure having an influence on the behaviour of a person, such as a defence mechanism

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 mechanisms

mechanism

1660s, from Modern Latin mechanismus, from Greek mekhane "machine, instrument" (see machine (n.)).

mechanisms in Medicine

mechanism

[mĕk′ə-nĭz′əm]

n.

A machine or mechanical appliance.

The arrangement of connected parts in a machine.

A system of parts that operate or interact like those of a machine.

An instrument or a process by which something is done or comes into being.

The involuntary and consistent response of an organism to a given stimulus.

A usually unconscious mental and emotional pattern that dominates behavior in a given situation or environment.

The sequence of steps in a chemical reaction.

The philosophical doctrine that all natural phenomena are explicable by material causes and mechanical principles.