Micromechanical

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Relating to the design, manufacture, and functioning of extremely small mechanical components often used in miniature devices and systems
2. Pertaining to the engineering and operation of tiny mechanical parts at microscopic scales typically integrated into complex technology
3. Concerning miniature mechanical elements and their applications in precision instruments and small-scale machinery

Etymology: The word is a modern compound built from two parts that have travelled very different routes into English. "Micro-" comes from the Ancient Greek "mīkrós," meaning small, and has been used as a combining form in English for the scale of things. "Mechanical" descends from the Ancient Greek "mēkhanikós," from "mēkhanḗ," meaning contrivance or device, which passed through Latin "mēchanicus" and Old French "mecanique" before reaching Middle English. Adding "-al," an adjectival ending that came through Old French and Latin, gave the English adjective "mechanical," and putting "micro-" in front of it creates a word for machinery at the smallest scale. Because the first element is a prefix attached to an existing English adjective, the compound is a straightforward modern formation rather than a word with a dramatic history of its own. Its meaning follows directly from its parts: a micromechanical component is one whose moving or structural parts are made at a very small scale.

Synonyms: miniature mechanical, small-scale mechanical