In a machine or piece of equipment, a mechanism is a part, often consisting of a set of smaller parts, which performs a particularfunction.
...the locking mechanism.
A bomb has been detonated by a special mechanism.
Synonyms: workings, motor, gears, works More Synonyms of mechanism
2. countable noun
A mechanism is a special way of getting something done within a particular system.
There's no mechanism for punishing arms exporters who break the rules. [+ for]
...the clumsy and ineffective mechanism of price controls.
Synonyms: process, workings, way, means More Synonyms of mechanism
3. countable noun
A mechanism is a part of your behaviour that is automatic and that helps you to survive or to cope with a difficult situation.
...a survival mechanism, a means of coping with intolerable stress.
4. See also defence mechanism
More Synonyms of mechanism
mechanism in British English
(ˈmɛkəˌnɪzəm)
noun
1.
a system or structure of moving parts that performs some function, esp in a machine
2.
something resembling a machine in the arrangement and working of its parts
the mechanism of the ear
3.
any form of mechanical device or any part of such a device
4.
a process or technique, esp of execution
the mechanism of novel writing
5. philosophy
a.
the doctrine that human action can be explained in purely physical terms, whether mechanical or biological
b.
the explanation of phenomena in causal rather than teleological or essentialist terms
c.
the view that the task of science is to seek such explanations
d.
strict determinism
Compare dynamism, vitalism
6. psychoanalysis
a.
the ways in which psychological forces interact and operate
b.
a structure having an influence on the behaviour of a person, such as a defence mechanism
mechanism in American English
(ˈmɛkəˌnɪzəm)
noun
1.
the working parts or arrangement of parts of a machine; works
the mechanism of a clock
2.
a.
a system whose parts work together like those of a machine
the mechanism of the universe
b.
any system or means for doing something; esp., a physical or mental process or processes, whether conscious or unconscious, by which some result is produced; machinery
see also defense mechanism
3.
the mechanical aspect; technical part
4.
the theory or doctrine that all the phenomena of the universe, particularly life, can ultimately be explained in terms of matter moving in accordance with the laws of nature
Word origin
ModL mechanismus < Gr mēchanē, machine
mechanism in Mechanical Engineering
(mɛkənɪzəm)
Word forms: (regular plural) mechanisms
noun
(Mechanical engineering: Machinery and components)
A mechanism is a system or structure of moving parts that performs a particular function, especially in a machine.
A chain drive is a mechanism consisting of a chain or chains for transmitting power.
The steering mechanism that is widely used on cars worldwide is rack-and-pinion.
A mechanism is a system or structure of moving parts that performs a particular function, especiallyin a machine.
Examples of 'mechanism' in a sentence
mechanism
An evolutionary survival mechanism makes the brain interpret diets as periods of famine.
The Sun (2016)
The defence mechanism came in the form of bunny ears and a smartphone.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Was it a defence mechanism?
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Your anger is a defence mechanism against being hurt.
The Sun (2011)
Welfare reform is all about changing payment mechanisms rather than the social and cultural benefits of work.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Everyone else will cheer a more normal price discovery mechanism for this vital mineral.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Place and practice were paramount in his method for making sense of causal mechanisms in nature.
The Times Literary Supplement (2014)
In fact our defence mechanisms spring into action to defend us against being overwhelmed.
Knowles, Jane Know Your Own Mind (1991)
The worms are often used in tests as they have many biological mechanisms seen in higher animals.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Physical stress reactions are very old survival mechanisms.
Vera Peiffer POSITIVE THINKING: Everything you have always known about positive thinking but wereafraid to put into practice (2001)
They also stress the permanence of the mechanisms or structures for incorporation.
Low, Nicholas Politics, Planning and the State (1990)
We shall now consider six defence mechanisms in a little detail.
Siann, Gerda & Ugwuegbu, Denis C. E. Educational Psychology in a Changing World (1988)
Play is a biological mechanism for acquiring and honing mental and physical skills.
Paul Martin MAKING HAPPY PEOPLE (2005)
As a pricing mechanism, fixed prices introduce inefficiencies of their own.
Larry Downes THE STRATEGY MACHINE (2002)
In particular, the various triggers that set the mechanism into action remain mysterious.
Dylan Evans PLACEBO: The Belief Effect (2003)
An independent Scotland would have to set up its own tax system with mechanisms to collect the money.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
He attached the cage to an automatic mechanism that delivered food at random intervals, then sat back and watched.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Actually, her withdrawal was simply a coping mechanism that helped her cope with so many temporary things in her life.
Christianity Today (2000)
When the engine begins to stall, there are automatic mechanisms that are produced from within to attempt to repair it.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Complex pay mechanisms, often brought into appease shareholders by linking pay to various performance measures, can have unexpected results.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
But it is a methodology that is informed by a view that social structures are, in various ways, oppressive mechanisms.
Lee Harvey Critical Social Research (1990)
In other languages
mechanism
British English: mechanism /ˈmɛkəˌnɪzəm/ NOUN
A mechanism is a part of a machine that does a particular task.