appointment
Americannoun
-
appointments
plural
-
a fixed mutual agreement for a meeting; engagement.
We made an appointment to meet again.
- Synonyms:
- date, tryst, rendezvous, assignation
-
a meeting set for a specific time or place.
I'm late for my appointment.
- Synonyms:
- date, tryst, rendezvous, assignation
-
the act of appointing, designating, or placing in office.
to fill a vacancy by appointment.
-
an office, position, or the like, to which a person is appointed.
He received his appointment as ambassador to Italy.
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Usually appointments. equipment, furnishings, or accouterments.
-
appointments, accouterments for a soldier or a horse.
-
Manège. a horse-show class in which the contestant need not be a member of a hunt but must wear regulation hunt livery.
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Archaic. decree; ordinance.
noun
-
an arrangement to meet a person or be at a place at a certain time
-
the act of placing in a job or position
-
the person who receives such a job or position
-
the job or position to which such a person is appointed
-
(usually plural) a fixture or fitting
-
property law nomination to an interest in property under a deed or will
Synonym Usage
Appointment, office, post, station all refer to kinds of duty or employment. Appointment refers to a position to which one is assigned, as by a high government official. Office often suggests a position of trust or authority. Post is usually restricted to a military or other public position, as of a diplomat, although it may also refer to a teaching position. Both post and station may refer to the place where a person is assigned to work.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of appointment
1375–1425; late Middle English apoynt ( e ) ment < Middle French ap ( p ) ointement. See appoint, -ment
Explanation
An appointment is a preset arrangement to meet, like a dentist’s appointment, an appointment with your accountant, or an appointment to have your palm read. An appointment is a formal date or plan to meet at the appointed time. Whether you have a doctor’s appointment, a hair appointment, or a 1 o’clock lunch appointment, you need to be there — or you’ll have a broken appointment. It’s easier to remember your appointments if you write them down! With roots in the Old French apointier, meaning to “arrange, settle, or place," appointment can also mean the placing, or appointing of, someone into an unelected position.
Vocabulary lists containing appointment
Sula
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"The Tragedy of Hamlet," Vocabulary from Act 4
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -ment
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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:
The application was submitted, and Ortiz Jara was completing a fingerprinting appointment for the application when he was detained in May.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2026
US President Donald Trump on Friday announced the appointment of conservative commentator Katie Zacharia as his new White House press secretary, praising her as a loyal supporter.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
The difference between a regular chatbot and an agent is that users typically ask agents to carry out tasks, like organizing their calendar or booking an appointment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
For example, if a patient was unable to attend an appointment, a navigator could notify the doctor, arrange a new appointment, or handle administrative tasks that might otherwise fall to clinical staff.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026
"Which I'm sure is fabulous. But you and I have an appointment with Monsieur Bertrand at ten."
From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda
Barber recalls driving her husband to medical appointments recently after he had a mini stroke, and how costs piled up as they live in a "medical desert."
From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026
By building those skills over the first year after childbirth, the team hoped patients would eventually feel confident arranging appointments, seeking primary care, and navigating the healthcare system without additional assistance.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026
Naseem said the pressure from the Welsh government was to "offer more appointments to the patient, rather than about the quality of the treatment".
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
At the Yeezy beauty salon in downtown Kyiv, no clients have canceled their appointments today, despite five air-raid alerts so far.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
I’m mostly sure it was a real promise—because even though I still hated the Dr. Doris appointments, part of me knew he was right.
From "The Science of Breakable Things" by Tae Keller
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.
