machinelike

[ muh-sheen-lahyk ]

adjective

1. like a machine, as in regular movement or uniform pattern of operation:

   to conduct business with machinelike efficiency.

Word History and Origins

Origin of machinelike¹

First recorded in 1690–1700; machine + -like

Example Sentences

At this nature-oriented museum, Serra’s sculptures are machinelike hulks in the garden.

From Washington Post

Every facet of his performances was similarly somber and machinelike.

From New York Times

Ray, an online poker whiz turned live player who exists “in pursuit of a perfect machinelike neutrality toward outcomes,” and whose tedious sections read as if they were generated by A.I.

From New York Times

He would help symbolize the almost machinelike efficiency of the Yankees in the mid-20th century, when only twice between Ford’s rookie year and 1964 did they fail to make the postseason.

From Seattle Times

The figures are abstracted, almost machinelike, and cement-colored, positioned against a sapphire sea and an equally intense sky.

From The New Yorker