ef·fi·cien·cy ( -fsh  n-s )n. pl. ef·fi·cien·cies 1. a. The quality or property of being efficient. b. The degree to which this quality is exercised: The program was implemented with great efficiency and speed. 2. a. The ratio of the effective or useful output to the total input in any system. b. The ratio of the energy delivered by a machine to the energy supplied for its operation. 3. An efficiency apartment. |
efficiency [ɪˈfɪʃənsɪ]
| efficiency (-fshn-s) 1. The ratio of the energy delivered (or work done) by a machine to the energy needed (or work required) in operating the machine. The efficiency of any machine is always less than one due to forces such as friction that use up energy unproductively. See also mechanical advantage. 2. The ratio of the effective or useful output to the total input in any system. |
Efficiency
cooking with gas Operating at maximum efficiency; performing well, functioning smoothly; really in the groove or on the right track. The expression probably comes from the efficiency of gas as a cooking medium (as contrasted with coal, wood, kerosene, electricity, etc.). Occasionally the phrase is jocularly updated by variants such as cooking with electricity or cooking with radar.
hit on all six To run smoothly; to function properly; to work to one’s fullest capacity; to be in physically fit and trim condition. This Americanism was originally used in speaking of internal combustion engines, specifically the functioning of the cylinders, which often misfired in earlier cars. When the figurative use gained currency, the word cylinder was dropped from the end of the expression. Variants include hit on all four and other multiples of two.
Modern science offers you a natural means to keep you “hitting on all six”—every minute of the day. (Saturday Evening Post, March 10, 1928)
in the groove In full swing, functioning smoothly, in top form. This U.S. slang expression was coined in the jazz age. Groove originally referred to the grooves of phonograph records. In the 1930s and ’40s, in the groove meant to play jazz music fervently and expertly, or to appreciate such music and by association be considered “hep” and sophisticated.
The jazz musicians gave no grandstand performances; they simply got a great burn from playing in the groove. (Fortune, August, 1933)
Eventually in the groove and groovy grew to mean ‘up-to-date’ or ‘fashionable,’ although this use is now being phased out of current slang. When in the groove is used, as in the following quotation from Webster’s Third, it emphasizes the quality of being in top form, rather than sophistication or fashionableness.
It made no difference, when he was in the groove, what he chose to talk about. (Henry Miller)
just like New York This American slang expression, usually an isolated comment on successful performance, has a wide range of equally vague equivalents such as right on, great, nice going, way to go. The reference is to New York City as the epitome of success, society, and fashion.
| Noun | 1. | efficiency - the ratio of the output to the input of any system ratio - the relative magnitudes of two quantities (usually expressed as a quotient) figure of merit - a numerical expression representing the efficiency of a given system, material, or procedure |
| 2. | efficiency - skillfulness in avoiding wasted time and effort; "she did the work with great efficiency" skillfulness - the state of being cognitively skillful economy - the efficient use of resources; "economy of effort" inefficiency - unskillfulness resulting from a lack of efficiency |
efficiency
efficiency savings → économies fpl de fonctionnement
efficiency apartment n (US) → studio m
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