💻 Usable by machines ⚙️ Easy to shape

machinable

4.1

Can be cut or shaped by a machine to make parts

adjective
/məˈʃinəbl/

Specialized

: maquinable

Engineers prefer machinable metals for their projects because they can be easily shaped.

Examples

Several modeling materials are available, including machinable (blue) wax, a nylon-like plastic polymer, and an investment-casting wax.

Academic text (1995)
And The thing is, I was thinking, oh, I got to get some chunks of machinable cast iron.
The factory uses machinable materials to produce precise components for their machines.
This vacuum-forming process requires machinable plastic to ensure accurate shapes.

Synonyms

moldable

vsmachinable

1 4.1

You can shape materials like clay when they are soft

is intended for cutting or working by machines not only soft forming

manipulable

vsmachinable

1 7.4

Easy to change, control, or shape

focuses on being worked by machines rather than simply controlled

formable

vsmachinable

1 4.4

Can be shaped or molded into a new form

is made to be shaped by machine processes rather than by hand

processable

vsmachinable

1 4.0

Able to be put into a form that a computer or machine can use

means suitable for machine shaping and cutting specifically

shapeable

vsmachinable

1 3.7

A material that you can make into different shapes

is specifically workable by machines rather than by hand

How Machinable

machinable

Specialized

4.1

difficult

∞ 1.6

unmalleable

1 9.0

Surface Forms

machinable positive

Morphology

machinable = machine (transparent) = machine + able

Standard adjectival formation from the verb 'machine' plus '-able', indicating suitability for machining in manufacturing contexts.

Etymology

The word machinable comes from machine 'a device that does work' and the ending -able 'can be done'. A 'machinable' material is one a machine can cut or shape easily, which is why machinable parts are faster and cheaper to make.