factory
fac-to-ry · noun
Definitions
noun
- 1.
A building or group of buildings where goods are manufactured or assembled.
- 2.
A place or organization that produces things rapidly or in large quantities (often figurative).
Forms
plural: factories
Phrases & expressions
- •factory floor — the area of a factory where goods are produced
- •factory farming — intensive industrial agriculture
- •factory settings — the original configuration of a device
- •factory worker — someone employed in manufacturing
Related words
Etymology
From Late Latin factorium meaning "oil press, place of business," from Latin factor meaning "doer, maker," from facere meaning "to do, make." Originally used in English to refer to a trading station overseas, the modern sense of a manufacturing plant developed in the 17th century.