manual

Everyday

1. Manual means done by hand or by a person's effort, not by a machine: «manual work». tree →
2. A manual is a book of instructions telling you how to use or fix something. tree →
3. A manual car has gears the driver changes by hand (called a «stick shift» in the US). tree →

In the lessons

Used in everyday life (instruction manual, manual labour), school (manual skills, handwriting), and cars. Phrases: «user manual», «manual work», «manual override».

Examples

• Read the manual before using the drill. tree →
• Building a wall is hard manual work. tree →
• Dad drives a manual car. tree →
• The game came with a thin manual. tree →
• You can switch the camera to manual mode. tree →
• Farm work used to be mostly manual. tree →

Note

Adverb: manually (done by hand). Opposite: automatic. «Manual» comes from Latin «hand».