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position definition

po·si·tion (pə zis̸hən)

noun

  1. the act of positing, or placing
  2. a positing of a proposition; affirmation
  3. the manner in which a person or thing is placed or arranged; attitude; posture; disposition in a sitting position
  4. one's attitude toward or opinion on a subject; stand his position on foreign aid
  5. the place where a person or thing is, esp. in relation to others; location; situation; site the ship's position
  6. the usual or proper place of a person or thing; station the players are in position
  7. a location or condition in which one has the advantage to jockey for position
  8. a strategic military site
  9. a person's relative place, as in society; rank; status
  10. a place high in society, business, etc. a man of position
  11. a post of employment; office; job to apply for a teaching position
  12. Finance the long or short commitment of a market trader in securities or commodities
  13. Music
    1. the arrangement of the notes of a chord with respect to their relative closeness or distance apart open position
    2. any of the fixed locations on the fingerboard of a violin, etc. that the left hand assumes for fingering a particular series of notes
    3. any of the various points to which a trombone slide may be moved to change the pitch

Etymology: MFr < L positio < positus, pp. of ponere, to place < *posinere < po-, away (< IE base *apo- > L ab, from, away) + sinere, to put, lay: see site

transitive verb

  1. to put into a particular position; place or station
  2. Rare to locate

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:
position Synonyms

position

n.

  1. A physical position

    location, locality, spot, seat, ground, environment, post, whereabouts, bearings, station, point, place, stand, space, surroundings, situation, site, topography, chorography, geography, region, tract, district, scene, setting; see also area 2, place 3.

  2. An intellectual position

    view, belief, attitude; see judgment 3, opinion 1.

  3. An occupational position

    job, situation, office; see job 1, profession 1, trade 2.

  4. A social position

    station, state, status; see rank 3.

  5. Posture

    pose, carriage, bearing, deportment, stance, stand, condition, situation, status, state, mien, form, manner, habit; see also attitude 1, posture 1. See syn. study at job.


position

v.

put, locate, settle in; see place.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

position Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • occupy: The Shanghai company occupies a key position in the world's fastest-growing car market.

Preposition: at

  • forefront: Chris Hare continued to maintain a position at the forefront of sea kayaking.

Adjective modifier

  • senior: Formerly, Roger held a number of senior positions within KPMG, most notably UK Deputy Senior Partner.

Modifies a noun

  • statement: In a position mission statements give to luckie park.

Noun used with modifier

  • cursor: Text at text cursor VDU 4 causes text to be written at the text cursor position in the normal way.

Preposition: in

  • hierarchy: A dogs life is incomplete if it unsure of its position in the hierarchy of its surroundings.

Preposition: of

  • equilibrium: Standard conditions The position of any equilibrium can be changed by changing conditions.
position usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

position quotes

For twenty years he has held a season ticket on the line of least resistance and has gone wherever the train of events has carried him, lucidly justifying his position at whatever point he happened to find himself.

-Amery, Leo(pold) Charles Maurice Stennett

You have been called to hold a high position, but not a safe one; a sublime position, but not a secure one. How terrible, how very terrible is the place you hold!

-St Bernard of Clairvaux

The pleasure is momentary, the position ridiculous, and the expense damnable.

-Chesterfield, Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl of

position quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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MLA Style

"position." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/position>

APA Style

position. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/position

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