robots

Noun (1)

robot (uncountable)

1. (historical) 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!”1849, Littell's Living Age, volume 23, page 309

Noun (2)

robot (plural robots)

1. An intelligent mechanical being designed to look like a human or other creature, and usually made from metal.
   • Young Rossum invented a worker with a minimum amount of requirements. He had to simplify him. He rejected everything that did not contribute directly to the progress of work—everything that makes man more expensive. In fact, he rejected man and made the Robot. My dear Miss Glory, the Robots are not...c. 1921 (date written), Karel Čapek, translated by Paul Selver, R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots): A Fantastic Melodrama […], Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, published 1923, →OCLC, Act...
2. 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.
3. A bot, software designed to perform a task.
   • Clifton Sellers attended a Zoom meeting last month where robots outnumbered humans.2025 July 2, Lisa Bonos, Danielle Abril, “No one likes meetings. They’re sending their AI note takers instead.”, in The Washington Post, →ISSN, archived from the original on 02 Jul 2025
4. (figuratively) A person who does not seem to have any emotions or individuality.
   • Straight society tries to change us by several means. Most of the time, it is mental torture, though physical abuse is not uncommon. We are programmed to be straight starting from the day we are born, and every action, word, and feeling must conform to the straight image. If we DO decide to be free...1973 December 22, Satya, “It Is Not We Who Must Change”, in Gay Community News, volume 1, number 27, page 3
5. (South Africa) A traffic light (from earlier robot policeman).

See all 9 meanings of robot