Technologists

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Specialists who prioritize the effective use of technology in various fields
2. Professionals committed to advancing technology through research and application
3. Individuals skilled in using and managing technology to solve practical problems ; professionals focused on creating and improving technological tools and systems

Etymology: "Technologist" is built from "technology" plus the suffix "-ist," which marks a person who practises or specialises in something. The suffix arrived through a long chain: Middle English borrowed it from Old French "-iste," which in turn came from Latin "-ista," itself taken from Greek "-istēs," an agent suffix. Its Greek ancestors meant something close to "one who does or deals with" a given subject, so a "-ist" word has always named a person tied to a particular practice. The first half, "technology," rests on Greek "tekhnē," meaning craft or art, combined with "-logia," the study or account of something. The Greek compound "tekhnologia" originally described a systematic account of an art or craft, not machinery. English took the word "technology" from that Greek base, and "technologist" then followed by adding "-ist" to it. The result is a word that literally names a practitioner of the study of crafts.

Synonyms: engineers, scientists, developers