mechanism English · revision 6741

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1622|origins=grc μηχανή}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈmɛk.ə.nɪz.əm/ ''(UK)''; /ˈmɛk.ə.nɪz.əm/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|la-new|mechanismus]],^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002)^(NODE 1998) from [[grc|μηχανή|tr=mēkhanḗ|t=machine, instrument, device]] (see [[machine]]);^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) MWU gives Late Latin mechanisma, contrivance, as the source.^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The structure of a machine or the way its parts work together: 1662 in the OED, the 1660s in Etymonline;^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) MWU has 1622.^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A mechanical contrivance of any kind is from the 1670s.^(Etymonline) A system of parts working together like a machine, in nature or the body, is from before 1677,^(OED 1989) and the action of the parts of a musical instrument from 1825.^(OED 1989) A contrivance or artifice (1670) and mechanical action (1671) were short-lived senses.^(OED 1989) In philosophy, mechanism is the doctrine that natural processes can be explained mechanically.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023) In psychology a mechanism is a habitual, often unconscious, way of reacting, as in a [[defence mechanism]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1622 – first known use (MWU).^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1662 – the structure of a machine.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1670s – a mechanical contrivance.^(Etymonline)

+ * before 1677 – a system of parts working together.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A machine or the arrangement of connected parts in a machine.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A system of parts that work together like a machine: ''the mechanism of the ear''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A process or means by which something is done: ''a mechanism for settling disputes''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(philosophy)'' The doctrine that natural processes are [[mechanical]] and explainable by [[physics]] and [[chemistry]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(psychology)'' An unconscious way of reacting, such as a [[defence mechanism]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[mechanismic]]

+ * [[antimechanism]]

+ * [[automechanism]]

+ * [[mechanist]]

+ * [[mechanistic]]

+ * [[neuromechanism]]

+ * [[servomechanism]]

+ * [[coping mechanism]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[machine]]

+ * [[mechanic]]

+ * [[mechanical]]

+ * [[mechanize]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}