# industry

Pronunciation: say "IN-duh-stree" /ˈɪndəstɹi/

## Noun

1. The businesses of the same type, considered together as a single whole; trade in a given line of work.
   - Simple: All the companies that do the same kind of work, looked at together.
   - _The automotive industry has shifted rapidly toward electric vehicles._
   - _Several industries rely heavily on imported raw materials._
2. The production of goods on a large scale, especially in factories using machines, and the businesses that do it; also business and commerce in general.
   - Simple: The making of goods in factories with machines, the companies that do this, or business in general.
   - _Industry now accounts for a smaller share of national employment than it once did._
   - _Much of the country's industry is concentrated in the northern provinces._
3. The tendency to work hard and steadily over a long period.
   - Simple: The habit of working hard and not giving up.
   - _The student's quiet industry earned her top marks._
   - _Years of patient industry turned the small shop into a thriving business._

## Other meanings

- (noun) A category of prehistoric stone tools grouped by their shared manufacturing style and associated with a particular technocomplex.

## Origin

From Middle English "industrie," borrowed via Old French from Latin "industria" (diligence, activity), from "industrius" (diligent, zealous). Its ultimate origin is unknown, though it is perhaps built from "indu" (in) plus a stem of "ūrō" (to burn, consume), suggesting the sense of being consumed with zeal.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/industry (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).