Meaning & use
automatic
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Meanings
adjectivecomparable
Working by itself once started, with little or no help from a person.
Grammar: Comes before a noun or after a verb: an automatic door; the system is automatic. It is mostly used as 'fully automatic' rather than 'more automatic'.
Patterns
- an automatic machine
- automatic doors
The garage has an automatic door that opens when the car approaches.
The coffee machine switches itself off in an automatic shutdown.
Our payment is automatic, so we never miss a bill.
adjectivecomparable
Done without thinking, as a natural or unconscious reaction.
Grammar: Often describes a response: an automatic reaction; he gave an automatic answer.
Patterns
- an automatic response
- an automatic reaction
Her automatic reply was 'Fine, thanks', even though she felt awful.
Blinking is an automatic reflex that protects the eyes.
After years of practice, typing became automatic for him.
adjectivebefore a noun
Following as a certain result of a rule or situation, with no choice or decision needed.
Grammar: Before a noun: an automatic penalty; it means that something happens as part of a rule.
Patterns
- automatic right to something
- automatic entry
The winner gets automatic entry into the final round.
Failing to pay on time leads to an automatic fine.
Being the oldest child does not give you an automatic right to decide.
nouncountableinformal
A car with a gearbox that changes gears by itself, or a gun that keeps firing while the trigger is held.
Grammar: Countable noun, often used for cars: I drive an automatic, not a manual.
I learned to drive in a manual, but I now own an automatic.
The rental company only had automatics left.
The officer explained the difference between a manual and an automatic firearm.
Word forms
| plural | automatics |
|---|
Common combinations
- automatic transmission
- Most cars in the United States have automatic transmission.
- automatic response
- His automatic response was to say no.
- fully automatic
- The factory is now fully automatic.
- automatic renewal
- Check the automatic renewal date before you sign up.
- automatic weapon
- Automatic weapons are strictly controlled by law.
- automatic pilot
- I drove home on automatic pilot and barely remember the trip.
Synonyms and how they differ
- self-operating
- Self-operating stresses that a machine runs itself, while automatic is the broader, everyday word.
- instinctive
- Instinctive describes behavior driven by natural feeling, whereas automatic can also describe habits that were learned.
- mechanical
- Mechanical can describe a machine or a lifeless, repeated action, and it often sounds critical when applied to a person.
- involuntary
- Involuntary says the body acts without your will, while automatic can include actions you simply do without thinking.
Opposites
Word family
- automatically adverb
- by itself, or without thinking
- automate verb
- to make a process work by machine
- automation noun
- the use of machines to do work that people used to do
- automaton noun
- a machine, or a person who acts without thinking
- autopilot noun
- a system that steers a vehicle without a person
Commonly confused: automatic or autonomous? automatic or automated?
automatic vs autonomous
Autonomous means independent or self-governing, while automatic means working by itself according to a fixed process.
automatic vs automated
Automated describes a process that has been made automatic by people, while automatic can also describe natural reactions.
Practice
The airport doors open without anyone touching them. They are _____ doors.
Choose one answer.
Automatic describes doors that work by themselves. Manual is the opposite, and involuntary and reluctant describe people or reactions, not doors.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “automatic”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.