Position

How to spell position

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce position

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does position mean?

1. nounThe particular place where someone or something is located or arranged.
2. nounA post of employment, or a person's rank or standing within a group.
3. verbTo put or arrange someone or something in a particular place.

Position in a sentence

• noun

  The surgeon checked the patient's position on the table before starting.

• noun

  She applied for a senior management position at the bank.

• verb

  The crew will position the camera near the finish line.

• noun

  From his position at the back of the hall he could see the whole stage.

• noun

  His position within the company gave him access to the budget.

• verb

  Workers position the heavy crates against the far wall.

Where does position come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin positio, meaning 'a placing' or 'an arrangement', which was built on the verb ponere, 'to put' or 'to set down', whose past participle was positus. English took it in during the late 1300s by way of Old French, where it already carried the sense of how something is arranged or where it stands. Over the centuries the meaning broadened from a literal physical spot to abstract notions such as a stance in an argument, a rank in society, or a post of employment. The same ponere root quietly shows up in a whole family of English words, including 'deposit', 'compose', 'opposite' and 'expose'. For spelling, the helpful clue is that the middle is the 'sit' of being set in place, and the ending is the soft '-tion' that sounds like 'shun', a trap because the ear hears no 't'.

How the word is built

• pos- (from Latin ponere/positus: to place, to put)
• -ition (noun suffix forming a state or act)