Contextualizebeta

robot

noun
/ˈɹəʊ̯.bɒt/

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₃erbʰ- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *h₃órbʰos Proto-Balto-Slavic *árbas Proto-Slavic *orbъ Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éyeti Proto-Balto-Slavic *-éitei Proto-Slavic *-iti Proto-Slavic *orbiti Proto-Indo-European *-otéh₂ Proto-Balto-Slavic *-atā́ˀ Proto-Slavic *-ota Proto-Slavic *orbota Old Czech robota Czech robota Czech robotbor. English robot Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota (“drudgery, servitude”). Coined in the 1920 science-fiction play R.U.R. by Karel Čapek after having been suggested to him by his brother Josef. Ultimately a cognate with Old English earfoþe and German Arbeit; see dialectal erf. Doublet of etymology 1. Related to English orphan, but with a -t- suffix from Proto-Slavic instead of the -an- from Ancient Greek. Compare Polish robotnik and Russian работник (rabotnik, “worker”), sometimes mistakenly cited as the direct source of the English word.

  1. borrowed from robot

Definitions

  1. A system of serfdom used in Central Europe, under which a tenant's rent was paid in…

    A system of serfdom used in Central Europe, under which a tenant's rent was paid in forced labour.

    • “I say again, down with the robot!—he is a dog who yields it!”
    • Although the robot varied from region to region, it was rarely less than burdensome.

  2. An intelligent mechanical being designed to look like a human or other creature, and…

    An intelligent mechanical being designed to look like a human or other creature, and usually made from metal.

  3. A machine built to carry out some complex task or group of tasks by physically moving,…

    A machine built to carry out some complex task or group of tasks by physically moving, especially one which can be programmed.

    • We have a robot in the house that does the vacuuming.
  4. ›+ 6 more definitions

    1. A bot, software designed to perform a task.

      • Clifton Sellers attended a Zoom meeting last month where robots outnumbered humans.

    2. A person who does not seem to have any emotions or individuality.

      • Yet surely he was a humorless robot of a man, spewing forth lonely and bitter critiques of all those lesser mortals with whom he could not identify.

    3. A traffic light (from earlier robot policeman).

    4. A theodolite which follows the movements of a prism and can be used by a one-man crew.

    5. A style of dance popular in disco in which the dancer imitates the stiff movements of a…

      A style of dance popular in disco in which the dancer imitates the stiff movements of a stereotypical android robot.

    6. A habitual poster on the /r9k/ board on 4chan

      A habitual poster on the /r9k/ board on 4chan; a member of the /r9k/ community.

      • One anonymous message addressed to "fellow robots" hoped readers would have "an enjoyable Elliot Rodger day"—a reference to the shooter who killed six near a Santa Barbara university last year.
      • It continued: "On October 5, 2015 at 1:00 p.m. CT, a fellow robot will take up arms against a university near Philadelphia. His cries will be heard, his victims will cower in fear, and the strength of the Union will decay a little more."

The neighborhood

Derived

anthrobot, antirobot, biorobot, biot, bot, -bot, Brobot, cobot, frozen robot syndrome, healthcare robot, housebot, kidnapped robot problem, microrobot, millirobot, Mobot, multirobot, nanorobot, robo-, roboid, robomb, robot chess, roboteer, robotesque, robotess, robotgirl, robothood, robotian, robotic, roboticide, roboticist, robotics, robotise, robotism, robotization, robotize, robot jockey, robotkind, robotless, robotlike, robot mower · +13 more

Vish — recursive loop

A definitional loop anchored at robot. Each word in the ring is defined by the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself. Scroll to it and watch.

01robot02labour03workers04worker05ant06hymenoptera07hymenopteron08insect09exoskeleton10robotic

A definitional loop anchored at robot. Each word in the ring appears in the definition of the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself.

10 hops · closes at robot

curated · pre-corpus. live cycle detection across the full graph is the next major milestone.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA