Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The applied science of equipment design, as for the workplace, intended to maximize productivity by reducing operator fatigue and discomfort.
  • noun Design factors, as for the workplace, intended to maximize productivity by minimizing operator fatigue and discomfort.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun biological science applied to study the relation between workers and their environments.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun The science of the design of equipment, especially so as to reduce operator fatigue, discomfort and injury.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the branch of engineering science in which biological science is used to study the relation between workers and their environments

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Greek ergon, work; see werg- in Indo-European roots + (eco)nomics.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Coined in 1950 from Ancient Greek ἔργον (ergon, "work") + economics

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Examples

  • However functionality and ergonomics is very important while designing.

    Overflow Bathtubs from Käsch 2009

  • I keep seeing these features about how to raise the laptop or monitor to eye level but my understanding of ergonomics is that you actually want the monitor to be * lower* than eye level.

    The Suspended Laptop | Lifehacker Australia 2009

  • But Gehry has stamped the building not just with his distinctive formal whimsy, but with his insight into what might be called the ergonomics of cultural institutions.

    In Miami, the shape of things to come Philip Kennicott 2011

  • After that, he just went around babbling about cognitive ergonomics, which is something to do with office furniture for Godless yuppies.

    God hates a fig « raincoaster 2007

  • Even for someone who is ambivalent about the adoption of an ergonomics standard, calling ergonomics "flawed science" is fightin 'words ...

    EHSToday.com RSS Feed 2010

  • She also was studying to earn minors in mathematics, human factors (also known as ergonomics) and psychology.

    SplicedFeed 2009

  • Style can refer to ease of use and ergonomics - in other words, how something fits into a person's life.

    OSNews 2009

  • She also was studying to earn minors in mathematics, human factors (also known as ergonomics) and psychology.

    SplicedFeed 2009

  • It's really solid, well made, and the ergonomics are a dream.

    Hankering for Yarn 2008

  • It's really solid, well made, and the ergonomics are a dream.

    Hankering for Yarn 2008

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