technology
technology — noun
1. the use of scientific knowledge to design and create tools, machines, and system
the use of scientific knowledge to design and create tools, machines, and systems that make everyday tasks easier or help solve practical problems
Modern technology has completely changed the way people communicate across long distances.
uncountable noun + singular verb agreement
The school invested in new technology to help students learn more effectively.
Advances in medical technology allow doctors to detect diseases much earlier than before.
Nia works for a company that develops technology for renewable energy systems.
It took centuries of technology to turn the smartphone into what it is today.
- engineering
focuses on designing and building structures/machines; narrower than technology
- innovation
emphasises new ideas and inventions; more abstract than technology
- applied science
formal; highlights the scientific basis of technology
- nature
what exists without human intervention or design
文法句型
technology + verb (singular agreement)
用法筆記
In this sense technology is uncountable and takes a singular verb. Use the + technology for the general field (e.g. the impact of technology on society).
常見錯誤
2. a specific device, system, or method that has been created using scientific know
a specific device, system, or method that has been created using scientific knowledge to perform a particular function
The hospital introduced a new scanning technology that produces clearer images of the brain.
countable: 'a new scanning technology'
Farmers in the region are adopting water-saving technologies to cope with the drought.
plural: 'technologies' for multiple specific systems
Ravindra is testing a voice-recognition technology designed for elderly users.
Better battery technology now lets electric cars travel over four hundred kilometres per charge.
- device
more concrete; usually a physical object rather than a method or system
- system
broader; may include non-technical procedures
- innovation
emphasises novelty; a technology may not be new
文法句型
a/the technology
technologies (plural)
用法筆記
This sense is countable and often used with a / an in the singular. The plural technologies refers to multiple distinct devices or methods (e.g. communication technologies). Compound nouns like battery technology or scanning technology treat technology as a mass noun but refer to a sub-type — these are borderline between sense 1 and sense 2.