Nonelectrics

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Referring to devices, tools, or systems that operate without the use of electrical power ; pertaining to methods or technologies that function through mechanical, manual, or chemical means rather than electricity ; describing items or processes devoid of electrical components or energy sources
2. Characterizing equipment or apparatus not relying on electricity for operation ; related to practices, instruments, or devices functioning through non-electrical principles ; denoting objects or systems that exclude electric power in their design or use
3. Indicative of technology or machinery that does not use electric current ; concerning manual, mechanical, or alternative energy-driven operations instead of electrical ones ; applied to components or activities that avoid incorporation of electricity as a functional element

Etymology: The most striking thing about "nonelectrics" is how little of it is ancient. The word "electric" traces back to the Greek "ḗlektron," meaning amber, the fossil resin that builds up a static charge when rubbed. Latin borrowed it as "ēlectrum," and scholars in the early modern period coined "ēlectricus" in New Latin, a name for the strange attraction amber displayed. English then adopted "electric" from that coinage, so the electrical sense is a modern extension of an ordinary word for a yellow gemstone. "Nonelectric" is simpler: it is "non-" attached to "electric," meaning not operated by electricity. The plural "nonelectrics" is the form of that adjective-turned-noun used for a category of devices, so the word essentially names everything in the world that does its work without the power that the amber-rubbing discoveries eventually made familiar.

Synonyms: non-electrical devices, manual devices

Antonyms: electrics, electrical devices