low-techadj.n.
/ˌləʊˈtɛk/, /ˈləʊˌtɛk/, U.S. /ˈloʊˌtɛk/, /ˌloʊˈtɛk/ A. adj.
Using or requiring only (relatively) simple technology. Opposed to high-tech. Cf. low technology n. and adj.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > [adjective] > relating to technology
technologic1817
technological1924
tech1942
whizz-bang1966
high-tech1967
low-tech1967
1967 Washington Post 22 Oct. h11/2 We're using Low-Tech construction methods.
1978 House & Garden Oct. 42 (heading) Low-tech building.
1981 Farmstead Mag. Winter 26/1 The low-tech greenhouse.
1991 J. Barth Last Voy. Somebody the Sailor 567 What concerns me most, however, is their vessel. Not its low-tech, high-maintenance materials... But the design.
2000 Denver Post 15 Oct. a1/2 Pentagon officials dub the low-tech threat to the high tech military ‘asymmetric warfare’.
B. n.
Simple or basic technology; an instance or example of this; = low technology n. Opposed to high-tech.
ΚΠ
1979 Washington Post 16 June e32/2 She turns [junk] into attractive..home furnishings... ‘Some people call it “low tech”,’ she said,..a reference to the current vogue for ‘high tech’.
1982 Inc. (Nexis) Feb. 24 Maybe the high-tech market has been overplayed; people have made piles of money in low tech, too.
1991 Sci. Amer. Feb. 3 Our first priority must be combi-tech, i.e. bringing together high, middle and low tech in the most creative way possible.
2004 D. MacKeracher Making Sense of Adult Learning (ed. 2) 187 These technologies range from the low tech of chalkboards to the high tech of computer networks and multimedia presentations.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.n.1967