engineer

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noun en·gi·neer \ˌen-jə-ˈnir\

Definition of engineer

1 : a member of a military group devoted to engineering work
2 obsolete : a crafty schemer : plotter
3a : a designer or builder of enginesb : a person who is trained in or follows as a profession a branch of engineeringc : a person who carries through an enterprise by skillful or artful contrivance
4 : a person who runs or supervises an engine or an apparatus

See engineer defined for English-language learners

See engineer defined for kids

Examples of engineer in a Sentence

Design engineers are working on ways to make the cars run more efficiently.
The engineer stopped the train.
Army engineers were called in to construct the canal.

Recent Examples of engineer from the Web

In 1969, John Hopkins, an aerospace engineer for the Astronautics division of General Dynamics, made a fateful decision.

— j. daniel jones, sandiegouniontribune.com, "A remarkable 1969 Ford wagon restoration ‘Before I check out’", 29 June 2017
Indeed, after testifying in front of him, an engineer with the Voice of America radio news service committed suicide.

— vanityfair.com, "How Donald Trump and Roy Cohn’s Ruthless Symbiosis Changed America", 28 June 2017
The historian Brotton once visited Google, where the engineers showed him a huge, wall-sized version of Google Earth.

— clive thompson, Smithsonian, "From Ptolemy to GPS, the Brief History of Maps", 27 June 2017
These autonomous activities have allowed Curiosity to do science when Earth isn’t in the loop, says Raymond Francis, the lead system engineer for AEGIS at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California.

— marina koren, The Atlantic, "The Mars Robot Making Decisions on Its Own", 23 June 2017
In one studio, Divya Gokulnath, a biotech engineer and one of about a dozen teachers who appear in the videos, is rehearsing for a math tutorial.

— saritha rai, Bloomberg.com, "Zuckerberg or Gates? Billionaires Try Opposite Paths for Online Education in India", 20 June 2017
Bergthold, a structural engineer with the Chicago Transit Authority, and Janowski, marketing director for the Chicago Regional Council of Carpenters, were named to the plan commission in April of last year.

— mike nolan, Daily Southtown, "Mayor: Letters dumping Tinley Park planners 'mistakenly' sent", 12 June 2017
My refugee classmates were former engineers and social workers relegated to factory jobs because Austria didn’t recognize their education.

— pam mandel, Longreads, "Can You Return To a Place That Was Never Your Home?", 8 June 2017
Traffic engineers will be on site to answer any questions about the project, and to explain how roundabouts work.

— erin edgemon, AL.com, "Construction of new roundabout near Birmingham Zoo, Highway 280 will start in 5 to 8 years", 4 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'engineer'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of engineer

Middle English engineour, from Anglo-French, from enginer to devise, construct, from engin

NEW!

First Known Use: circa 1635

See Words from the same year

Other Job Terms

factotum, milliner, ostler, scrivener, tinker, webster, wordsmith

engineer

verb en·gi·neer

Definition of engineer

transitive verb
1 : to lay out, construct, or manage as an engineer engineer a bridge
2a : to contrive or plan out usually with more or less subtle skill and craft engineer a business dealb : to guide the course of engineer a rally
3 : to modify or produce by genetic engineering corn engineered to resist crop pests

See engineer defined for English-language learners

Examples of engineer in a Sentence

The rebels engineered a successful attack.
the mayor engineered an agreement to have a major league team play in our city

Recent Examples of engineer from the Web

In 2012, Doudna and others showed how this system could be used to deliberately engineer the genomes of bacteria, cutting their DNA with exceptional precision.

— ed yong, The Atlantic, "How CRISPR Yanked Jennifer Doudna Out of the Ivory Tower", 26 June 2017
Last week’s BIO 2017 convention in San Diego highlighted these advances, such as a breakthrough in producing biofuel from algae that was engineered by Synthetic Genomics in La Jolla.

— bradley j. fikes, sandiegouniontribune.com, "San Diego's science allure draws in big partners", 26 June 2017
Under the direction of Taibi Magar, the chaos is beautifully engineered.

— jesse green, New York Times, "Review: In ‘Master,’ the Flip Side of a Masterpiece", 8 June 2017
It was engineered by trade labor unions who make up the bulk of the AFL-CIO's board and who endorsed Pritzker early last month.

— rick pearson, chicagotribune.com, "Illinois labor group endorses Pritzker, cementing Democratic front-runner status", 6 June 2017
The Pentagon is still incorporating engineering upgrades to its missile interceptor, which has yet to be fully tested in realistic conditions.

— Washington Post, "Pentagon missile defense program scores a win", 31 May 2017
CAROL ROSENBERG crosenberg@miamiherald.com The rotational Air Force engineering unit that’s assigned to maintain Camp Justice lived there from July 2007 to 2011.

— carol rosenberg, miamiherald, "No health survey conducted before Pentagon built Guantánamo’s Camp Justice", 25 May 2017
Now if only there were technology to engineer a 54-second pregnancy... The couple's commitment to a quality time lapse is nothing short of impressive, especially considering preparing for a new baby is not a chill, low-key time.

— elyse roth, Redbook, "Couple Documents Entire Pregnancy Journey In An Incredible Time-Lapse Video", 17 May 2017
Mr. Iger engineered the purchases of Pixar Animation Studios, Marvel Entertainment Inc. and Lucasfilm, which cost more than $15 billion combined.

— ben fritz, WSJ, "Disney’s Iger Isn’t About to Let Go as CEO", 16 May 2017

First Known Use of engineer

1828

Synonym Discussion of engineer

guide, lead, steer, pilot, engineer mean to direct in a course or show the way to be followed. guide implies intimate knowledge of the way and of all its difficulties and dangers. guided the scouts through the cave lead implies showing the way and often keeping those that follow under control and in order. led his team to victory steer implies an ability to keep to a course and stresses the capacity of maneuvering correctly. steered the ship through a narrow channel pilot suggests guidance over a dangerous or complicated course. piloted the bill through the Senate engineer implies finding ways to avoid or overcome difficulties in achieving an end or carrying out a plan. engineered his son's election to the governorship

ENGINEER Defined for English Language Learners

engineer

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noun

Definition of engineer for English Language Learners

: a person who has scientific training and who designs and builds complicated products, machines, systems, or structures : a person who specializes in a branch of engineering
: a person who runs or is in charge of an engine in an airplane, a ship, etc.
: a person who runs a train

engineer

verb

Definition of engineer for English Language Learners

: to plan, build, or manage (something) by using scientific methods
: to produce or plan (something) especially in a clever and skillful way
: to change the genetic structure of (a plant or animal)

ENGINEER Defined for Kids

engineer

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noun en·gi·neer \ˌen-jə-ˈnir\

Definition of engineer for Students

1 : a person who designs and builds machinery or technical equipment : a person who studies or works in a branch of engineering an electrical engineer
2 : a person who runs or is in charge of a railroad engine or other machinery or technical equipment

engineer

play

verb en·gi·neer

Definition of engineer for Students

engineered

;

engineering

1 : to plan, build, or manage as an engineer They engineered a faster race car.
2 : to plan out in a skillful or clever way : contrive The general engineered the defeat of the enemy.