Word of the Day

: October 2, 2006

ergonomic

adjective er-guh-NAH-mik

What It Means

1 : of or relating to the science of designing and arranging things people use so that the people and things interact most efficiently and safely

2 : designed or arranged for safe, comfortable, and efficient use

ergonomic in Context

The hotel's Web site boasts that each room has a work desk with high speed internet access and an ergonomic chair.

Did You Know?

In 1969, a British publication assured the public that, although the word "ergonomics" looks forbidding, "all it means is the science of making things fit people, instead of asking people to fit things." Ergonomic design as a field of study originated in the 19th century when a Polish author, Wojciech Jastrzebowski, wrote an article about the relation between human activity and the methods used to accomplish that activity. In the article, written in his native Polish, Jastrzebowski coined the word "ergonomji," an efficient combination of the Greek "ergo-," meaning "work," and "nomos," meaning "law." British scientist K.F.H. Murrell is credited with creating the English word "ergonomics" in 1949, applying the "-nomics" ending to "ergo-" in imitation of "economics."

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.