robot

English Online Dictionary. What means robot‎? What does robot mean?

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈɹəʊ.bɒt/
• (General American, Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈɹoʊ.bɑt/
• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈɹəʉ.bɔt/
• (rare, dated) IPA^(key): /ˈɹəʊ.bət/
• (rare, dated) IPA^(key): /ˈɹoʊ.bət/

Etymology 1

From German Robot, from a West Slavic language, ultimately related to Etymology 2, below.

Noun

robot (uncountable)

1. (now historical) A system of serfdom used in Central Europe, under which a tenant's rent was paid in forced labour. [from 19th c.]

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota (“drudgery, servitude”). Coined in the 1920 science-fiction play R.U.R. by Karel Čapek after having been suggested to him by his brother Josef. Ultimately a cognate with Old English earfoþe and German Arbeit. Doublet of orphan.

Noun

robot (plural robots)

1. (chiefly science fiction) An intelligent mechanical being designed to look like a human or other creature, and usually made from metal. [from 20th c.]
3. A machine built to carry out some complex task or group of tasks by physically moving, especially one which can be programmed. [from 20th c.]

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:robot

   Hypernym: automaton

   Hyponym: android
4. (figuratively) A person who does not seem to have any emotions or individuality. [from 20th c.]
5. (South Africa) A traffic light (from earlier robot policeman). [from 20th c.]
6. (surveying) A theodolite which follows the movements of a prism and can be used by a one-man crew.
7. (dance, preceded by definite article) A style of dance popular in disco in which the dancer imitates the stiff movements of a stereotypical android robot.

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Descendants

• → Arabic: رُوبُوت (rūbūt), رُوبُوط (rūbūṭ)
• → Hindi: रोबोट (roboṭ)
• → Japanese: ロボット (robotto)
• → Korean: 로봇 (robot)
• → Persian: رُبات (robât), روبات (rôbât)
• → Swahili: roboti
• → Welsh: robot

Translations

Etymology 3

Referencing the origin of the name of the 4chan imageboard /r9k/ (created in 2008), so-called because it implements the ROBOT9000 algorithm by Randall Munroe to prevent the reposting of content.

Possibly overlapping with the sense of robot (“a person who does not seem to have any emotions”), alluding to autism, due to the prevalence of personal stories describing awkward or embarrassing situations on the board.

Noun

robot (plural robots)

1. (Internet slang, 4chan slang) A habitual poster on the /r9k/ board on 4chan; a member of the /r9k/ community.

See also

• android
• artificial intelligence
• computer
• cyborg
• domotics
• pedipulator
• robot revolution

References

Further reading

• robot on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• “robot”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• Douglas Harper (2001–2025) “robot”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Anagrams

• boort, torob

Afrikaans

Etymology

Borrowed from English robot, borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈrʊə̯.bɔt/

Noun

robot (plural robotte)

1. robot
2. traffic light
   • 1997, Riana Scheepers, Dogters van Afrika. Verhale oor Suid-Afrikaanse Vroue, Tafelberg (publ.).

Basque

Etymology

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /robot/ [ro.β̞ot̪]
• Rhymes: -obot, -ot
• Hyphenation: ro‧bot

Noun

robot anim

1. robot

Declension

Related terms

Further reading

• “robot”, in Euskaltzaindiaren Hiztegia [Dictionary of the Basque Academy] (in Basque), Euskaltzaindia [Royal Academy of the Basque Language]

Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [ruˈβɔt]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic, Valencia) [roˈbɔt]
• Rhymes: -ɔt

Noun

robot m (plural robots)

1. robot

Derived terms

Further reading

• “robot”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], 2007 April
• “robot”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025.
• “robot” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “robot” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Cebuano

Etymology

From English robot, from Czech robot, from robota (“drudgery, servitude”). Coined in the 1921 science-fiction play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) by Karel Čapek after having been suggested to him by his brother Josef.

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: ro‧bot

Noun

robot

1. a machine built to carry out some complex task or group of tasks by physically moving, especially one which can be programmed
2. an intelligent mechanical being designed to look like a human or other creature, and usually made from metal
3. (figuratively) a person who does not seem to have any emotions
4. a style of dance popular in disco whereby the dancer impersonates the movement of a robot

Czech

Etymology

From robota. Coined by Czech painter and writer Josef Čapek, it first appeared in the 1921 science-fiction play R.U.R. by his brother Karel Čapek.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈrobot]

Noun

robot m anim

1. robot (in humanoid form)

Declension

Noun

robot m anim or m inan

1. robot (in non-humanoid form)

Declension

Related terms

Descendants

• → English: robot
  • → Arabic: رُوبُوت (rūbūt), رُوبُوط (rūbūṭ)
  • → Hindi: रोबोट (roboṭ)
  • → Japanese: ロボット (robotto)
  • → Korean: 로봇 (robot)
  • → Persian: رُبات (robât), روبات (rôbât)
  • → Swahili: roboti
  • → Welsh: robot
• → French: robot
  • → Italian: robot
  • → Portuguese: robô
  • → Romanian: robot
  • → Turkish: robot

Further reading

• “robot”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
• “robot”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
• “robot”, in Internetová jazyková příručka (in Czech), 2008–2025

Danish

Etymology

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ʁoˈbʌd]

Noun

robot c (singular definite robotten, plural indefinite robotter)

1. robot

References

• “robot” in Den Danske Ordbog

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed, likely from German Robot, from Czech robot. The plural is likely influenced by English or French.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈroː.bɔt/
• Hyphenation: ro‧bot

Noun

robot m (plural robots or robotten, diminutive robotje n)

1. robot [from 1921]

   Synonym: kunstmens

Derived terms

• robotarm
• robotauto
• robotvliegtuig

Related terms

• arbeid
• bot
• robotica
• robotisch

Anagrams

• boort

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʁɔ.bo/

Noun

robot m (plural robots)

1. robot

   Je ne suis pas un robot. ― I am not a robot.

Derived terms

• robot boulanger

Descendants

• → Italian: robot
• → Portuguese: robô
• → Romanian: robot
• → Turkish: robot

Further reading

• “robot”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Galician

Etymology

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /roˈbɔt/ [roˈβ̞ɔt̪]
• Rhymes: -ɔt
• Hyphenation: ro‧bot

Noun

robot m (plural robots)

1. robot

References

• “robot”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2025

Hungarian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈrobot]
• Hyphenation: ro‧bot
• Rhymes: -ot

Etymology 1

From Bavarian robat, robold, from Czech robota (“forced labour, drudgery”).

Noun

robot (plural robotok)

1. (historical) socage, forced labour
2. (figuratively) hard work, drudgery

Declension

Derived terms

Etymology 2

From Czech robot, from robota (“forced labour, drudgery”). Coined in the 1921 science-fiction play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) by Karel Čapek.

Noun

robot (plural robotok)

1. robot

Declension

Derived terms

Further reading

• robot in Géza Bárczi, László Országh, et al., editors, A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára [The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (ÉrtSz.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN.

Indonesian

Etymology

Borrowed from English robot, borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈrɔbɔt/ [ˈrɔ.bɔt̪̚]
• Rhymes: -ɔbɔt
• Syllabification: ro‧bot

Noun

robot (plural robot-robot)

1. robot

Derived terms

Related terms

Further reading

• “robot” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

Italian

Alternative forms

• robò

Etymology

Borrowed from French robot, borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /roˈbo/^**, /ˈrɔ.bot/
• Rhymes: -o, -ɔbot
• Hyphenation: rò‧bot

Noun

robot m (invariable, diminutive robottìno)

1. robot

   Synonyms: androide, automa

2. (computing, video games) bot

   Synonyms: bot, CPU, computer

Usage notes

The French-inspired, possibly hyperforeign pronunciation /roˈbo/ might be falling out with the younger generations, which see it as an old-fashioned pronunciation and prefer the second one (/ˈrɔ.bot/) instead. Additionally, the first pronunciation is also deliberately spelled robò.

Derived terms

• robot da cucina

References

Anagrams

• botro, torbo

Jamaican Creole

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɹʷoː.bʌt/
• Hyphenation: ro‧bot

Noun

robot (plural robot dem, quantified robot)

1. (slang) illegal taxi

See also

• route taxi

Further reading

• robot at JamaicanPatwah.com

Latvian

Verb

robot (transitive, 2nd conjugation, present roboju, robo, robo, past roboju)

1. to notch
2. to jag
3. to make an incision (on)

Conjugation

Synonyms

• grubuļot
• izrobot

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Noun

robot m (definite singular roboten, indefinite plural roboter, definite plural robotene)

1. robot

References

• “robot” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Noun

robot m (definite singular roboten, indefinite plural robotar, definite plural robotane)

1. robot

References

• “robot” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Polish

Etymology

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈrɔ.bɔt/
• Rhymes: -ɔbɔt
• Syllabification: ro‧bot

Noun

robot m animal (female equivalent (rare) robotka)

1. robot

Declension

Derived terms

Related terms

Further reading

• robot in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• robot in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from French robot.

Pronunciation

Noun

robot m (plural robots)

1. (rare) Alternative spelling of robô

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French robot, borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Noun

robot m (plural roboți)

1. robot

Declension

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /rôbot/
• Hyphenation: ro‧bot

Noun

rȍbot m (Cyrillic spelling ро̏бот)

1. robot

Declension

Slovene

Etymology

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /rɔbóːt/

Noun

robọ̑t m anim

1. robot

Declension

Further reading

• “robot”, in Slovarji Inštituta za slovenski jezik Frana Ramovša ZRC SAZU, portal Fran
• “robot”, in Termania, Amebis
• See also the general references

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from English robot, borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /roˈbot/ [roˈβ̞ot̪]
• Rhymes: -ot
• Syllabification: ro‧bot

Noun

robot m (plural robots)

1. robot

Derived terms

Related terms

Further reading

• “robot”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

Swedish

Etymology

Borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota. First attested in 1921. The weaponry sense attested since 1944.

Noun

robot c

1. a robot (machine that carries out complex tasks)

2. (weaponry) a missile, guided missile

   Synonym: missil

   Hypernym: robotvapen

   Hyponyms: kryssningsrobot, luftvärnsrobot, sjömålsrobot

   Holonym: robotsystem

Declension

Derived terms

(robot):

(weaponry):

References

• robot in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• robot in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

Tagalog

Etymology

Borrowed from English robot, borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈɾobot/ [ˈɾoː.bot̪̚]
• Rhymes: -obot
• Syllabification: ro‧bot

Noun

robot (Baybayin spelling ᜇᜓᜊᜓᜆ᜔)

1. robot

Further reading

• “robot”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018

Turkish

Etymology

Borrowed from French robot, borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɾoˈbot/
• Hyphenation: ro‧bot

Noun

robot (definite accusative robotu, plural robotlar)

1. robot [from 1933]
2. Ellipsis of mutfak robotu (“food processor”).

Declension

Derived terms

Further reading

• “robot”, in Turkish dictionaries, Türk Dil Kurumu
• Nişanyan, Sevan (2002–) “robot”, in Nişanyan Sözlük
• Ayverdi, İlhan (2010) “robot”, in Misalli Büyük Türkçe Sözlük, a reviewed and expanded single-volume edition, Istanbul: Kubbealtı Neşriyatı

Vietnamese

Etymology

Borrowed from English robot, borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [zo˧˧ ʔɓot̚˧˦]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [ʐow˧˧ ʔɓok̚˦˧˥]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [ɹow˧˧ ʔɓok̚˦˥]
• Phonetic spelling: rô bốt

Noun

robot

1. robot

Welsh

Etymology

Borrowed from English robot, borrowed from Czech robot, from robota, from Old Czech robota, from Proto-Slavic *orbota, from *orbiti + *-ota.

Noun

robot m (plural robotiaid or robotau, not mutable)

1. robot

Usage notes

The plural form robotiaid is preferred for humanoid robots or androids whereas the plural form robotau designates machines.

Derived terms

• robotaidd (“robotic”, adjective)
• roboteg f (“robotics”)

Further reading

• R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “robot”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies