Engineering - Introductory

Learn these terms and build a solid engineering vocabulary. This comprehensive list covers simple machines, electricity, force and momentum, building materials and structural elements, and much more. This list is sure to cement your understanding of engineering.
131 words 2511 learners

Learn words with Flashcards and other activities

Definition First
Print Flashcards

Other learning activities

Answer a few questions about each word. Use this to prep for your next quiz! Compete with other teams in real time to see who answers the most questions correctly! Test your spelling acumen. Read the definition, listen to the word and try spelling it!

Teaching tools

Create and assign quizzes to your students to test their vocabulary. Assign learning activities including Practice, Vocabulary Jams and Spelling Bees to your students, and monitor their progress in real-time.

Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. accuracy
    the quality of being near to the true value
  2. angle
    the space between two lines or planes that intersect
  3. arch
    a curved masonry construction for spanning an opening
  4. architect
    someone who creates plans to be used in making something
  5. assembly
    the act of constructing something, as a piece of machinery
  6. beam
    a long thick piece of material used in construction
  7. brainstorm
    try to solve a problem by thinking intensely about it
  8. bridge
    structure allowing passage across a river or other obstacle
  9. buckle
    bend out of shape, as under pressure or from heat
  10. cement
    a building material that is a powder made of a mixture of calcined limestone and clay; used with water and sand or gravel to make concrete and mortar
  11. circuit
    an electrical device providing a path for current to flow
  12. collaborate
    work together on a common enterprise or project
  13. column
    a tall vertical cylindrical structure standing upright
  14. combustion
    a reaction of a substance with oxygen to give heat and light
  15. component
    one of the individual parts making up a larger entity
  16. composite
    consisting of separate interconnected parts
  17. compression
    the process of becoming smaller or pressed together
  18. computer science
    the branch of engineering science that studies (with the aid of computers) computable processes and structures
  19. concrete
    a strong hard building material made with gravel and cement
  20. conductor
    a substance that readily serves as a medium for transmission
  21. configuration
    an arrangement of parts or elements
  22. constraint
    a limitation or restriction
  23. construction
    the act of building something
  24. control
    a mechanism that directs the operation of a machine
  25. criterion
    the ideal in terms of which something can be judged
  26. current
    a flow of electricity through a conductor
  27. cylinder
    a chamber within which a piston moves
  28. dam
    a barrier constructed to contain the flow of water
  29. data
    a collection of facts from which conclusions may be drawn
  30. define
    decide upon or fix with certainty
  31. deform
    alter the shape of (something) by stress
  32. delimit
    determine the essential quality of
  33. design
    the act of working out the form of something
  34. designer
    someone who creates plans to be used in making something
  35. digital
    using or characteristic of computerized technology
  36. dimension
    the magnitude of something in a particular direction
  37. dome
    a hemispherical roof
  38. efficiency
    the ratio of the output to the input of any system
  39. efficient
    being effective without wasting time, effort, or expense
  40. elasticity
    the tendency of a body to return to its original shape
  41. electricity
    a physical phenomenon that can produce light, heat and power
  42. electronic
    relating to or operating by a controlled current
  43. energy
    any source of usable power
  44. engine
    motor that converts energy into work or motion
  45. engineering
    applying scientific knowledge to practical problems
  46. experiment
    the act of conducting a controlled test or investigation
  47. fatigue
    a weakened state caused by long stress on a material
  48. force
    influence that results in motion, stress, etc. when applied
  49. fossil fuel
    energy-producing substance derived from preserved organisms
  50. friction
    the resistance when a body is moved in contact with another
  51. fuel
    a substance that can be consumed to produce energy
  52. fulcrum
    the pivot about which a lever turns
  53. gear
    a toothed wheel that engages another toothed mechanism
  54. heat
    a form of energy transferred by a difference in temperature
  55. hydraulics
    the study of the mechanics of fluids
  56. impact
    a forceful consequence; a strong effect
  57. inclined plane
    a simple machine for elevating objects
  58. inelastic
    not able to resume shape after stretching or compression
  59. interpretation
    an explanation that results from making sense of something
  60. joint
    junction by which parts or objects are linked together
  61. lever
    a simple machine giving a mechanical advantage on a fulcrum
  62. load
    weight to be borne or conveyed
  63. machine
    a device for overcoming resistance by applying force
  64. machinery
    mechanical or electrical devices collectively
  65. magnitude
    the property of relative size or extent
  66. material
    the substance that goes into the makeup of a physical object
  67. mechanics
    the branch of physics concerned with the motion of bodies
  68. mechanism
    device consisting of a piece of machinery
  69. model
    a hypothetical description of a complex entity or process
  70. modeling
    the act of representing something
  71. momentum
    the product of a body's mass and its velocity
  72. motion
    a change of position not entailing a change of location
  73. open-ended
    without fixed limits or restrictions
  74. optimize
    make optimal; get the most out of; use best
  75. patent
    a document granting an inventor sole rights to an invention
  76. perimeter
    the size of something as given by the distance around it
  77. plastic
    synthetic material that can be molded into objects
  78. plate
    structural member consisting of a horizontal beam that provides bearing and anchorage
  79. pollution
    contamination of the natural environment
  80. power
    (physics) the rate of doing work
  81. precision
    the quality of being exact
  82. pressure
    the act of putting pressure on something
  83. probability
    a measure of how likely it is that some event will occur
  84. problem
    a question raised for consideration or solution
  85. proposal
    something suggested, as a plan or assumption
  86. propulsion
    the act of moving forward
  87. pulley
    a wheel with a groove in which a rope can run
  88. pump
    a device that moves fluid or gas by pressure or suction
  89. purpose
    an anticipated outcome that guides your planned actions
  90. qualitative
    involving distinguishing attributes
  91. quantitative
    expressible as an amount that can be measured
  92. raw material
    material suitable for manufacture or use or finishing
  93. recycling
    the act of processing used materials to create something new
  94. reproducible
    capable of being reproduced
  95. resistance
    any mechanical force that tends to slow or oppose motion
  96. rigid
    incapable of or resistant to bending
  97. robot
    a mechanism that can move automatically
  98. simple machine
    a device for overcoming resistance at one point by applying force at some other point
  99. simulation
    representing the real world by a computer program
  100. sketch
    preliminary drawing for later elaboration
  101. software
    written programs operating on a computer system
  102. solar energy
    energy from the sun that is converted into thermal or electrical energy
  103. solution
    a method for solving a problem
  104. speed
    a rate at which something happens
  105. stable
    resistant to change of position or condition
  106. steel
    an alloy of iron with small amounts of carbon
  107. stiff
    incapable of or resistant to bending
  108. strain
    deformation of a body under the action of applied forces
  109. stress
    (physics) force that produces strain on a physical body
  110. strong
    having strength or power greater than average or expected
  111. structure
    a complex entity made of many parts
  112. sustainable
    capable of being prolonged
  113. switch
    device for making or breaking the connections in a circuit
  114. system
    a group of independent elements comprising a unified whole
  115. technology
    the practical application of science to commerce or industry
  116. tension
    a stress that produces an elongation of a physical body
  117. toughness
    the elasticity and hardness of a metal object
  118. tower
    a structure taller than its diameter
  119. tradeoff
    an exchange that occurs as a compromise
  120. trial
    the act of testing something
  121. unstable
    lacking fixity or firmness
  122. valve
    a mechanical device for controlling the flow of a fluid
  123. variable
    a quantity that can assume any of a set of values
  124. velocity
    distance traveled per unit time in one direction
  125. viable
    capable of being done with means at hand
  126. voltage
    the rate at which energy is drawn from a source
  127. volume
    the amount of 3-dimensional space occupied by an object
  128. watt
    a unit of power equal to 1 joule per second
  129. wedge
    something solid that can be pushed between two things
  130. wheel and axle
    hoist so arranged that a rope unwinding from a wheel is wound onto a cylindrical drum or shaft coaxial with the wheel
  131. work
    a manifestation of energy
Created on Fri Mar 03 16:07:56 EST 2017 (updated Thu Apr 20 11:21:21 EDT 2017)

Sign up now (it’s free!)

Whether you’re a teacher or a learner, Vocabulary.com can put you or your class on the path to systematic vocabulary improvement.