Word of the Day ·
utilitarian
adjective
What it means
- Of or relating to utility.
- ethicsPertaining to utilitarianism.
- Practical and functional, present for use, not just for show.
The semi-streamlined contour of the earlier G.W.R. railcars has been given up in favour of a more utilitarian blunt-nose end, and effective floor space gained thereby.
1941 October, “Notes and News: Great Western Parcels Railcar”, in Railway Magazine, page 4741 more example
These have helped develop a recognition in the industry that bland utilitarian stations do not provide an attractive welcome to the railway, that passengers value stations of character as well as convenience, and that these qualities encourage greater use of trains.
2020 December 2, Anthony Lambert, “Reimagining Railway Stations”, in Rail, pages 38–39
In a sentence
The semi-streamlined contour of the earlier G.W.R. railcars has been given up in favour of a more utilitarian blunt-nose end, and effective floor space gained thereby.
1941 October, “Notes and News: Great Western Parcels Railcar”, in Railway Magazine, page 474
Where it comes from
From utility + -arian. Coined by English philosopher Jeremy Bentham as early as 1781, and popularized by his student John Stuart Mill, who mistakenly attributed the term to John Galt.
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