adjective
autonomous
aw-TO-nuh-muhs
adjective
1
Governing or managing itself without outside control.
"The region became autonomous, with its own parliament and laws."
"Each department operates as an autonomous unit within the company."
2
Able to act or operate on its own, without a human directly controlling it.
"The warehouse now uses autonomous robots to move stock."
How to Use Autonomous
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishIndependent — running itself, whether that's a country, a team, or a machine.
Common pairings
autonomous region
autonomous vehicle
fully autonomous
Word Forms
more autonomous comparative, most autonomous superlative
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The region became _____, with its own parliament and laws.
Etymology
From Greek autónomos, "living under one's own laws," from autós ("self") and nomos ("law").