A machine that uses energy to produce movement or power. It can also mean something that drives or powers a process or system.
From Old French *engin* ('skill, clever invention, war machine'), from Latin *ingenium* ('natural talent, inborn quality'). The meaning narrowed over time from 'clever device' to 'power machine.'
Originally, an 'engine' was more about cleverness than metal—your mind was your first engine. Today, search engines and game engines still carry that older meaning: not just machines, but systems of smart design.
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