mechanism

[ mek-uh-niz-uh m ]

/ ˈmɛk əˌnɪz əm /

SEE 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

OTHER WORDS FROM mechanism

mech·a·nis·mic, adjective an·ti·mech·an·ism, noun

Words nearby mechanism

mechanical weathering, mechanically recovered meat, mechanician, mechanics, mechanicsville, mechanism, mechanist, mechanistic, mechanize, mechano-, mechanochemistry

Example sentences from the Web for mechanism

Franck has not, as they say, spelled out a mechanism by which this could happen.

The Right Wing Screams for the Wambulance Over Gay Marriage Ruling |Walter Olson |October 13, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The “tapping” mechanism is similar, like tapping someone on the shoulder via the Internet.

Bigger, Bolder, and Better Than Ever: Steve Jobs Would Be Proud of Today's Apple |Kyle Chayka |September 9, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
I mean, I recognize the mechanism; I know what it is as opposed to everything else.

The Stacks: Grateful Dead I Have Known |Ed McClanahan |August 30, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
It is also used as a mechanism of revenge after a couple parts ways.

So You Want to be a Porn Star? Inside the Sex Tape Phenomenon |Aurora Snow |July 19, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

Madison is at odds with Alexander Hamilton and puts in place the mechanism for an opposition political party.

Dick and Lynne Cheney Play the Founding Fathers for Laughs |Eleanor Clift |May 13, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The more the geometry in mechanism is emphasized, the less can mechanism admit that anything is ever created, even pure form.

Creative Evolution |Henri Bergson
From neither can we obtain much impression of the mechanism of his invention.

Aspects and Impressions |Edmund Gosse
He mars the fairest work by showing me its skeleton, and reveals the mechanism of things while hiding the beautiful results.

The Works of Honor de Balzac |Honor de Balzac
Grafted on a Grecian stock, every shoot bore Grecian fruit: and what was borrowed from mechanism was reproduced in beauty 184.

Athens: Its Rise and Fall, Complete |Edward Bulwer-Lytton
That part of the mechanism which represents the equator and the zodiac is calculated to make one revolution in 25,000 years.

Terrestrial and Celestial Globes Vol II |Edward Luther Stevenson

British Dictionary definitions for mechanism

mechanism

/ (ˈmɛkəˌnɪzəm) /

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 parts the mechanism of the ear

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

a process or technique, esp of execution the 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

Medical definitions for mechanism

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.

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

mechanism

noun

Origin of mechanism

OTHER WORDS FROM mechanism

Words nearby mechanism

Example sentences from the Web for mechanism

British Dictionary definitions for mechanism

noun

Medical definitions for mechanism

n.

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

mechanism

noun

Origin of mechanism

OTHER WORDS FROM mechanism

Words nearby mechanism

Words related to mechanism

Example sentences from the Web for mechanism

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noun

Medical definitions for mechanism

n.

British Dictionary definitions for mechanism