Meaning of well-oiled machine | Babel Free

Definitions

1. Something that operates capably through the effective coordination of many parts.
   figuratively, idiomatic
2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see well-oiled, machine.

Examples

“run like a well-oiled machine”

“Our office runs like a well-oiled machine.”

“Our office is a well-oiled machine.”

“Trevor was the firm's facilities manager and it was his job to make sure that their office ran like a well-oiled machine and that the partners, attorneys, and staff were comfortable.”

“A movie studio in the so-called golden era was a well-oiled machine with everything needed to make movies right in place on the studio lot.”

“Contrary to this dismal picture is the popular concept of the classroom that runs like a well-oiled machine, smoothly, flawlessly, functioning at full capacity, producing maximum output.”

“The writer is never enthusiastic and rarely Imaginative. His lines flow with the smoothness of a well-oiled machine.”

CEFR level