banausic

Definition

Of or pertaining to technical matters; mechanical.

Etymology

From Ancient Greek βαναυσικός (banausikós, “of or for mechanics”), from βάναυσος (bánausos, “mechanical; ironsmith”) + -ῐκός (-ĭkós, suffix forming relational adjectives). βάναυσος is derived from βαύνος (baúnos, “forge, furnace”), a Pre-Greek word of unknown origin.

Example Sentences

• "The true "Gentleman," they [the ruling classes] assert, will far more easily acquire the technical knowledge necessary for an officer, a judge, or for the administration of some high post, than one who has been brought up in some banausic speciality, will be able to gain the general educational foundation essential for a good ruler."
• "It was the Greeks who taught us the dignity of leisure; it is from them that we inherit the perception that the highest life is the life of contemplation. But this respect for leisure, with the Greeks, was accompanied by a contempt for the banausic occupations."
• "[T]he indifference or contempt which the ruling minorities felt towards "banausic" pursuits or technological gadgetry – an attitude rooted in the literary and oratorical bias of their education."