industrial revolution

noun

: a rapid major change in an economy (as in England in the late 18th century) marked by the general introduction of power-driven machinery or by an important change in the prevailing types and methods of use of such machines

Examples of industrial revolution in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The first broad generation of American economists, of the Gilded Age, were nebbish cloistered bookworms who missed out on being a doer in the greatest era of being a doer, the industrial revolution. —Brian Domitrovic, Forbes, 11 Jan. 2025

But whereas those European experiences of urbanization were part of an industrial revolution that saw growth accelerate dramatically, the more recent urbanization of what used to be called the Third World has occurred in places where economic growth is either low, slowing down, or nonexistent. —Richard Beck, Harper's Magazine, 2 Dec. 2024

The other is the worry that a new industrial revolution will allow machines to disrupt and replace humans in every—or almost every—area of society, from transport to the military to healthcare. —Nicholas Wright, Foreign Affairs, 10 July 2018

The industrial revolution literally reshaped America’s kitchens. —Melvin Backman, Quartz, 19 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1840, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

industrial revolution

noun

: a rapid major change in an economy (as in England in the late 18th century) marked by the general introduction of power-driven machinery