robotic
Americanadjective
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in the manner of a robot; mechanical; lacking human intelligence or emotion.
He’s so constant and efficient that he looks robotic on the ice, and his scores for artistic performance suffer.
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performed by a robot without active guidance from a human operator.
Over the course of several robotic missions, NASA gathered information about the surface of Mars and its atmosphere.
Etymology
Origin of robotic
First recorded in 1925–30; robot ( def. ) + -ic ( def. )
Explanation
Something is robotic if it moves or behaves like a machine. If you express no emotion and do things in an automatic-seeming way, your friends might say you're robotic. The adjective robotic can describe something related to the use of robots, like a robotic technique for dismantling a bomb or a robotic tool for surgery. Often, it's used to describe a person who reminds you of a robot: "She gets good grades, but she's so robotic! All she does is work — never has any fun!" Science fiction writer Isaac Asimov is credited with the first use of robotic in 1941.
Vocabulary lists containing robotic
Vocabulary from "There Will Never Be an Age of Artificial Intimacy," by Sherry Turkle
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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.
A Boeing spokesman said the company has sped up seeker production by adding robotic equipment and finding new suppliers to provide parts like circuit cards.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 9, 2026
Intuitive Surgical makes the da Vinci robotic surgery platform, which has become an industry standard.
From Barron's • Jun. 5, 2026
Many of the new robotic data companies are focusing on industrial use cases.
From Los Angeles Times • May 31, 2026
This robotic exploration should last until 2029, with 25 launches and 4 metric tonnes of cargo landed on the Moon, Carlos García-Galán, Moon Base programme executive said on Tuesday.
From BBC • May 26, 2026
She knew her way around a library better than the robotic carts in Mr. Lemoncello’s library.
From "Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics" by Chris Grabenstein
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.
