Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
automate [aw-tuh-meyt] WORD ORIGIN verb (used with object), au·to·mat·ed, au·to·mat·ing. to apply the principles of automation to (a mechanical process, industry, office, etc.). to operate or control by automation. to displace or make obsolete by automation (often followed by out): The unskilled jobs are going to be automated out. verb (used without object), au·to·mat·ed, au·to·mat·ing. to install automatic procedures, as for manufacturing or servicing; follow or utilize the principles of automation: Many banks have begun to automate. Liberaldictionary.com
Origin of automate First recorded in 1950–55; back formation from automation Related formsau·to·mat·a·ble, adjectivede-au·to·mate, verb, de-au·to·mat·ed, de-au·to·mat·ing.non·au·to·mat·ed, adjectiveun·au·to·mat·ed, adjective Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019 British Dictionary definitions for automatable automate verb to make (a manufacturing process, factory, etc) automatic, or (of a manufacturing process, etc) to be made automatic Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 Word Origin and History for automatable automate v.
“to convert to automatic operation,” 1954, back-formation from automated (q.v.). Ancient Greek verb automatizein meant “to act of oneself, to act unadvisedly.” Related: Automating.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
