ENGLISH
REFERENCE

android

n. countable
B2 Upper Intermediate US //ˈænˌdɹɔɪd// UK //ˈændɹɔɪd// an·droid

n. a robot that is built to look and act like a human being. It usually has a head, two arms, and two legs to match a person's shape.

n. an automaton or robot designed to resemble a human being in physical form and movement. Derived from the Greek roots for 'man' and 'form'.


SIMPLE

The movie features an android that helps the main character.

CONTEXTUAL

Engineers are working on an android that can mimic human facial expressions to make social interactions feel more natural.

COMPLEX

Science fiction often explores the ethical implications of creating an android so sophisticated that it becomes indistinguishable from a biological human.

Synonyms
Origin

Learned borrowing from New Latin androides, from Ancient Greek ἀνδρός (andrós, genitive of ἀνήρ (anḗr, “man, human”)) + -ειδής (-eidḗs, itself from εἶδος (eîdos, “form, image, shape, appearance, look”)). By surface analysis, andr- + -oid.

Usage

In modern contexts, often used to refer to the mobile operating system, though the primary lexical meaning remains the humanoid robot.

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