I. ˌman(y)əˈfakchə(r), -ksh- noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle French, from Late Latin manufactus made by hand (from Latin manu — abl. of manus hand — + factus, past participle of facere to make, do) + Middle French -ure — more at manual , do
1. : something made from raw materials by hand or by machinery
hemp and tow cloth were familiar household manufactures — V.S.Clark
imports most manufactures used by consumers or needed for internal development — D.L.Cohn
2.
a. : the process or operation of making wares or other material products by hand or by machinery especially when carried on systematically with division of labor
families engaged in domestic manufacture often lived and worked in one room — J.W.Krutch
the manufacture of furniture
steel manufacture
b. : a productive industry using mechanical power and machinery
3. obsolete : a manual occupation or trade
4. archaic : factory
all my prospects were built on a manufacture I had erected — Daniel Defoe
5. : the act or process of making, inventing, devising, or fashioning : production , creation
the manufacture of blood goes on constantly in the human body — Morris Fishbein
a true appreciation of the manufacture of a movie and of a star — Horace Sutton
his ideas about the manufacture of this world and his hopes for his future — Rudyard Kipling
II. verb
( manufactured ; manufactured ; manufacturing -kchəriŋ, -ksh(ə)r- ; manufactures )
Etymology: French manufacturer, from manufacture, n.
transitive verb
1. : to make (as raw material) into a product suitable for use
the wood … is manufactured into fine cabinetwork — American Guide Series: Oregon
manufacture iron into steel
2.
a. : to make from raw materials by hand or by machinery
were manufacturing beautiful jewelry of gold, silver, shell, and precious stones — R.W.Murray
a substitute for milk … manufactured from the soya bean — V.G.Heiser
b. : to produce according to an organized plan and with division of labor
manufacturing 7000 cars in one day — American Guide Series: Michigan
3. : to make up sometimes with the intent to deceive : invent , fabricate
the speech is evidently manufactured by the historian — Edward Gibbon
4.
a. : to produce as if by manufacturing : create
is busy manufacturing a new culture — D.W.Brogan
the strain of manufacturing conversation for at least ten minutes — Wilfred Fienburgh
b. : to produce from different and usually less specialized materials in the living body
green plants manufacture carbohydrates
intransitive verb
: to engage in manufacture
Synonyms: see make