well-oiled machine

== English == === Etymology === The figurative sense is an extension from the literal sense. === Noun === well-oiled machine (plural well-oiled machines) (idiomatic, figurative) Something that operates capably through the effective coordination of many parts. 1850, The Knickerbocker; or, New-York monthly magazine, "Editor's Table", p. 573: The writer is never enthusiastic and rarely Imaginative. His lines flow with the smoothness of a well-oiled machine. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see well-oiled,‎ machine. ==== Related terms ====