machine noun
1 piece of equipment
ADJ. great, huge, large, powerful | automatic, electronic | labour-saving | ingenious, versatile | sophisticated | reliable | defective | cash, coffee, exercise, fax, sewing, (telephone) answering, vending, video, washing | kidney, life-support The crash victim is now on a life-support machine.
VERB + MACHINE operate, use, work | install We've had a new washing machine installed. | start, stop | plug in, unplug | build, make | service | design The machine is designed to fit under a counter.
MACHINE + VERB go, work Have you got the machine working again? | break down | run The machine runs on solar power.
MACHINE + NOUN operator | parts | tool machine tools for making weapons
PREP. by The potatoes are planted by machine. | in a/the ~ Just put those clothes in the machine (= the washing machine). | on a/the ~ I make my own dresses on my sewing machine. | ~ for a machine for making coffee
PHRASES a make of machine What make of machine are they using?
2 system/organization
ADJ. party, political The independent candidates did not have the support of a party machine. | administrative, government, state | propaganda, publicity | military, war the president's propaganda machine
PHRASES a cog in the machine (figurative) Tired of being a tiny cog in a vast machine, he handed in his resignation. | a well-oiled machine (figurative) The department ran like a well-oiled machine since the reorganization.
You can also check other dicts: machine (English, 中文解释 ), wordnet sense, Collins Definition