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robotics

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Etymology and origin of the English word robotics

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1941 Isaac Asimov, Astounding Science-Fiction
Ultimate origin
Czech robota
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English robot
English robotics
From the same root
English robotic ← robot

Pronunciation

  • /ɹəʊˈbɒt.ɪks/, /ɹoʊˈbɑ.tɪks/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English robot + -ics,[2][3] the OED taking it from robotic with the suffix -ics.[4] It was coined by Isaac Asimov, in science fiction.[3][2][4] Robot is from Czech robot, from Karel Čapek's play “R.U.R.” (1920), from robota (“forced labour, drudgery”).[4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The science and technology of designing, building and using robots: 1941, in a story by Isaac Asimov in Astounding Science-Fiction.[4][2][6]

Semantic evolution

The word was born in science fiction:[2] Asimov used it in 1941,[4][2] and his stories from 1944 on also had laws of robotics, rules governing how robots behave.[4] Etymonline dates his "Three Laws of Robotics" to 1968.[2] The adjective robotic is recorded from 1928,[4] though Etymonline also credits it to Asimov in 1941.[2] From 1981 the word was also used for robotic instruments themselves.[4] Collins also gives it as another name for robot dancing.[7]

Timeline

  • 1923 – robot first recorded in English.[5][2]
  • 1928 – robotic.[4]
  • 1941 – robotics, in Asimov.[4][2][6][3]
  • 1944 – laws of robotics, in Asimov.[4]
  • 1981 – robotic instrumentation.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The technology or science of designing, building, operating and using robots and similar automatic devices.[6][7][4][8]
  2. Robotic instruments or equipment.[4]
  3. Robot dancing.[7]

Word family

  • roboticist

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b Ayto, John (2005), Word Origins: The Secret Histories of English Words from A to Z, 2nd ed., London: A & C Black
  6. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  8. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Robotics.” Etymologically, 31 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/robotics. Accessed 31 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·