Dictionary

mechanically en · ADV

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• /məˈkænɪkli/

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *megʰ-der.? Ancient Greek μηχανή (mēkhanḗ) Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Hellenic *-kos Ancient Greek -κός (-kós) Ancient Greek -ικός (-ikós) Ancient Greek μηχανικός (mēkhanikós)bor. Latin mēchanicusder. Old French mecaniquebor. Middle English mechanic Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Proto-Indo-European *-is Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālisbor. Old French -albor. ▲ Latin -ālis Old French -elbor. ▲ Latin -ālisbor. Middle English -al Middle English mechanical English mechanical Proto-Indo-European *leyg-der. Proto-Germanic *līkąder. Proto-Germanic *-līkaz Proto-Germanic *-ê Proto-Germanic *-līkê Proto-West Germanic *-līkē Old English -līċe Middle English -ly English -ly English mechanically From mechanical + -ly.

Meanings

1. From a mechanical point of view.
   • mechanically speaking
2. In a mechanical manner, mindlessly, thoughtlessly, automatically, without thinking.
   • He commenced to say his prayers mechanically. 1952 September 1, Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, page 65:
   • My fears, however, made me mechanically close my thighs; but the very touch of his hand insinuated between them, disclosed them and opened a way for the main attack. 1749, [John Cleland], “(Please specify the letter or volume)”, in Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure [Fanny Hill], London: […] [Thomas Parker] for G. Fenton [i.e., Fenton and Ralph Griffiths] […], →OCLC:
   • "Of what avail," and her eyes wandered mechanically round, "is all the luxury by which I am surrounded, if it serve only as a barrier to all kindly feelings?" 1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, pages 183–184:
   • Provided they stick to their legal priors, rather than voting mechanically as Republican appointees, the justices seem likely to split on some of these cases — with real consequences for Trump’s agenda. 2025 February 26, Aziz Huq, “Conservatives on the Supreme Court May Not Fully Align With Trump”, in Politico:

Forms

Deriveds

magnetomechanically · nanomechanically · cytomechanically · quantum-mechanically · chemomechanically · mechanically separated meat

Translations (16)

ca mecànicament (in a mechanical manner, mindlessly, without thinking) · fi koneellisesti (in a mechanical manner, mindlessly, without thinking) · it macchinalmente (in a mechanical manner, mindlessly, without thinking) · fr machinalement (in a mechanical manner, mindlessly, without thinking) · fi mekaanisesti (in a mechanical manner, mindlessly, without thinking) · pl mechanicznie (in a mechanical manner, mindlessly, without thinking) · fi mekaanisesti (from a mechanical point of view) · pl machinalnie (in a mechanical manner, mindlessly, without thinking) · fr mécaniquement (from a mechanical point of view) · pl bezmyślnie (in a mechanical manner, mindlessly, without thinking) · pl mechanicznie (from a mechanical point of view) · es mecánicamente (from a mechanical point of view) · de mechanisch (in a mechanical manner, mindlessly, without thinking) · es mecánicamente (in a mechanical manner, mindlessly, without thinking) · de mechanisch (from a mechanical point of view) · ca mecànicament (from a mechanical point of view)