factory
noun
fac·to·ry
ˈfak-t(ə-)rē 
plural factories
1
: a building or set of buildings with facilities for manufacturing
a car factory
—often used before another nounfactory workers
a factory building
—often used figurativelya college accused of being a diploma factory
2
archaic
: a station where factors reside and trade
a colonial factory
Examples of factory in a Sentence
She got a job in the factory.
the new factory will create hundreds of much-needed jobs
Recent Examples on the Web
That still hasn’t happened, but Tesla kept the dream alive in 2025 by demonstrating a driverless delivery, where one of its electric vehicles navigated autonomously from the company’s Austin factory to a nearby customer’s doorstep in June.
—
Lora Kolodny,jennifer Elias,annie Palmer, CNBC, 16 Dec. 2025
The '53 vehicle was kept at a Bic factory for several years before it was discarded, and the '54-55 vehicle was said to break down at the edge of the road during the 1955 Giro d'Italia, the Bic statement said.
—Greta Cross, USA Today, 15 Dec. 2025
When steam power arrived, factories didn’t simply replace water wheels with engines.
—Charles Lamanna, Fortune, 15 Dec. 2025
Sam owns the shoe factory in town, which employs many locals.
—Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 15 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for factory
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Lora Kolodny,jennifer Elias,annie Palmer, CNBC, 16 Dec. 2025
The '53 vehicle was kept at a Bic factory for several years before it was discarded, and the '54-55 vehicle was said to break down at the edge of the road during the 1955 Giro d'Italia, the Bic statement said.
—Greta Cross, USA Today, 15 Dec. 2025
When steam power arrived, factories didn’t simply replace water wheels with engines.
—Charles Lamanna, Fortune, 15 Dec. 2025
Sam owns the shoe factory in town, which employs many locals.
—Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 15 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for factory
Cite this Entry
“Factory.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/factory. Accessed 20 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
factory
noun
fac·to·ry
ˈfak-t(ə-)rē
plural factories
: a building or set of buildings equipped for manufacturing
Etymology
from early French factorie "a place where business is carried on," derived from Latin factor "one that does or makes," from factus, past participle of facere "to make, do" — related to fashion, manufacture
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