adjustment
Americannoun
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the act of adjusting; adaptation to a particular condition, position, or purpose.
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the state of being adjusted; orderly relation of parts or elements.
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a device, as a knob or lever, for adjusting.
the adjustments on a television set.
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the act of bringing something into conformity with external requirements.
the adjustment of one's view of reality.
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harmony achieved by modification or change of a position.
They worked out an adjustment of their conflicting ideas.
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Sociology. a process of modifying, adapting, or altering individual or collective patterns of behavior so as to bring them into conformity with other such patterns, as with those provided by a cultural environment.
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Insurance. the act of ascertaining the amount of indemnity that the party insured is entitled to receive under the policy, and of settling the claim.
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a settlement of a disputed account or claim.
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a change or concession, as in price or other terms, in view of minor defect or the like.
noun
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the act of adjusting or state of being adjusted
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a control for regulating
the adjustment for volume is beside the speaker
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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misadjustmentnoun
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nonadjustmentnoun
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overadjustmentnoun
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preadjustmentnoun
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underadjustmentnoun
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adjustmentaladjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of adjustment
Explanation
The act of making an alteration or modification is an adjustment. If you buy a new pair of jeans, but they are too long, you can make a quick adjustment and hem them, have someone else hem them, or use safety pins. The process of adapting to your environmental conditions is also called an adjustment. After you leave home for college, both you and your parents will have a period of adjustment. Some people adjust easier to change than others — you may be having a ball going to class, eating cereal for dinner, and making new friends but an adjustment your parents will have to make is that they will need to stop worrying about you.
Vocabulary lists containing adjustment
Schooled
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A Single Shard
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Word Generation Weekly - Series 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
This gradual change suggests that dreams may evolve alongside psychological adjustment, particularly as people adapt to stressful or disruptive events.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 27, 2026
Another challenge can be determining what constitutes a "reasonable adjustment," a sticking point which can be what ends up being decided in a tribunal.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
“This is not just a simple adjustment of wording,” Berg Wu, who won the barista championship in 2016, wrote on Facebook.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
Nolan uses this adjustment to build out the film’s emotional throughline: an extended rumination on the evils of war and the repugnance of men.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026
Cora thought she had made a fine adjustment to the more delicate rhythms of domestic work.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
“We require so much of those guys, from what we do with formations with motions, with adjustments that they’re going to make before the ball is even snapped,” Scheelhaase said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
That has enabled managers to make fast supply-chain adjustments and well-informed pricing decisions.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026
“Just like ramps and elevators help everyone, neurodiversity-affirming adjustments make the world more accessible for all of us.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
The tribunal upheld part of his claims for unfair dismissal, wrongful dismissal and a failure to make reasonable adjustments.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
Mine took hold, rooted, and bloomed, even though there were inevitable adjustments to the new soil and climate.
From "Three Little Words: A Memoir" by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
