/ ˈfæktri; NAmE ; -təri/ noun
( pl. -ies ) a building or group of buildings where goods are made :
a car factory
factory workers
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SYNONYMS
factory
plant ♦ mill ♦ works ♦ yard ♦ workshop ♦ foundry
These are all words for buildings or places where things are made or where industrial processes take place.
factory
a building or group of buildings where goods are made:
a chocolate / cigarette / clothing factory
plant
a factory or place where power is produced or an industrial process takes place:
a nuclear power plant
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a manufacturing plant
mill
a factory that produces a particular type of material:
a cotton / paper / textile / woollen mill
works
(often in compounds) a place where things are made or an industrial process takes place:
a brickworks
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a steelworks
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Raw materials were carried to the works by barge.
yard
(usually in compounds) an area of land used for building sth:
a shipyard
workshop
a room or building in which things are made or repaired using tools or machinery:
a car repair workshop
foundry
a factory where metal or glass is melted and made into different shapes or objects:
an iron foundry
PATTERNS AND COLLOCATIONS :
a car / chemical / munitions factory / plant
an engineering plant / works
factory / mill / foundry owners / managers / workers
to manage / run a factory / plant / mill / works / yard / workshop / foundry
to work in / at a factory / plant / mill / yard / workshop / foundry
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WORD ORIGIN
late 16th cent. (originally referring to a place where traders did business in a foreign country): via Portuguese feitoria . The current sense is based on late Latin factorium , literally oil press.