I. -nə̇kəl, -nēk- adjective
Etymology: Middle English mechanicall, from Middle French or Latin; Middle French mechanique, mecanique (from Latin mechanicus ) + Middle English -all -al
1.
a. : of, relating to, or concerned with machinery or tools
mechanical design
nothing is more exasperating to the mechanical farmer than to be frustrated in his plans by lack of essential supplies — Country Life
became one of the skilled mechanical superintendents of his day — Edna Yost
the public had recognized the need for education in agriculture and the mechanical and industrial arts — J.B.Conant
: produced or operated by a machine or tool
agitate a substance by mechanical shaking
a mechanical saw
b. : of or relating to manual operations
2. : of or relating to artisans, craftsmen, or machinists
3.
a. : done as if by a machine : seeming to be uninfluenced by will or emotion : automatic , involuntary
busy in a leisurely mechanical way — Douglas Stewart
writers … learned but narrow in their range of feeling, dry, mechanical , timid, subservient — Van Wyck Brooks
b. : absorbed in, concerned with, or devoted to technicalities or minutiae
nor was capacity shown for anything above a mechanical handling of the matter — H.O.Taylor
4.
a. : relating to, governed by, or in accordance with mechanics
the belief that the whole universe is a mechanical contrivance in which nothing can happen except in absolute accordance with the eternal and unalterable laws of mechanics — M.R.Cohen
one of the first applications of mechanical energy in Texas manufacturing was the use of water power in pioneer sawmills and gristmills — American Guide Series: Texas
b. : relating to the quantitative relations of force and matter as distinguished from mental, vital, and chemical
the mechanical pressure of a wind of about 800 miles per hour could be tolerated by the well supported body — H.G.Armstrong
5. : relying on mechanics for theory or hypothesis
mechanical physiologists
mechanical determinism
6. : automatic
a mechanical stoker
7. : caused by, resulting from, or relating to a process that involves a purely physical as opposed to a chemical change
mechanical weathering
mechanical erosion
8. of pulp : made from groundwood — contrasted with chemical
Synonyms: see spontaneous
II. noun
( -s )
1. obsolete : mechanic 2a
2. also mechanical scheme : a piece of finished copy consisting typically of type proofs, hand lettering, and art positioned and mounted for photomechanical reproduction in a letterpress, offset, or other printing plate — called also paste-up