Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1600-1700
Language: Latin
Origin: Greek, from automatos; AUTOMATIC1

automaton

 noun
     
au‧tom‧a‧ton plural automata or automatons [countable]
1 a machine, especially one in the shape of a human, that moves without anyone controlling it [= robot]
2 someone who seems unable to feel emotions or to think about what they are doing
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
Dictionary pictures of the day
Do you know what each of these is called?
What is the word for picture 1? What is the word for picture 2? What is the word for picture 3? What is the word for picture 4?
Click on any of the pictures above to find out what it is called.

Explore our topic dictionary

Browse the dictionary