compartment

[ kuhm-pahrt-muhnt ]

/ kəmˈpɑrt mənt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR compartment ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a part or space marked or partitioned off.

a separate room, section, etc.: a baggage compartment.

U.S. Railroads. a private bedroom with toilet facilities.

a separate aspect, function, or the like: the compartments of the human mind.

Architecture. a distinct major division of a design.

Heraldry. a decorative base, as a grassy mound, on which the supporters of an escutcheon stand or rest.

verb (used with object)

to divide into compartments.

Nearby words

Origin of compartment

1555–65; < Middle French compartiment < Italian compartimento. See compart, -ment

SYNONYMS FOR compartment

1. division, section.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR compartment ON THESAURUS.COM

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for compartment

The EFPs were hidden in a compartment under an unassuming-looking house.
How the NSA Became a Killing Machine|Shane Harris|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Ogorzow had to remember where it was at the Hirschgarten station and keep an eye out on the doors on that side of the compartment.
A Serial Killer on the Loose in Nazi Berlin|Scott Andrew Selby|January 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
After this attack, Ogorzow left his weapon behind on the train, hiding it in the compartment.
A Serial Killer on the Loose in Nazi Berlin|Scott Andrew Selby|January 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Ogorzow turned his back on Bendorf and opened the compartment door.
A Serial Killer on the Loose in Nazi Berlin|Scott Andrew Selby|January 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST

The other women may have attempted to squeeze through the small window into the driver's compartment, but it was too late.
Still No Explanation for Horrific Limo Fire|Christine Pelisek|May 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
In his opinion the House could no longer keep itself in a compartment apart—especially as it was not a watertight compartment.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 152, March 7, 1917.|Various
They begin with an historical picture, its landscape and buildings, in one compartment.
A Treatise on Painting|Leonardo Da Vinci
The contents of this compartment are thereby discharged through the shoot C into the generating tank B.
Acetylene, The Principles Of Its Generation And Use|F. H. Leeds
He kneeled down plump on the floor of that compartment and took her in his arms and kissed her.
Jan and Her Job|L. Allen Harker
In a few moments, however, he returns, and takes a middle seat in the compartment.
Sharps and Flats|John Nevil Maskelyne

British Dictionary definitions for compartment

compartment

/ (kəmˈpɑːtmənt) /

noun

one of the sections into which an area, esp an enclosed space, is divided or partitioned

any separate part or sectiona compartment of the mind

a small storage space; locker

Derived Formscompartmental (ˌkɒmpɑːtˈmɛntəl), adjectivecompartmentally, adverb

Word Origin for compartment

C16: from French compartiment, ultimately from Late Latin compartīrī to share, from Latin com- with + partīrī to apportion, from pars part

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for compartment

compartment

1560s, from Middle French compartiment "part partitioned off" (16c.), through Italian compartimento, from Late Latin compartiri "to divide," from com-, intensive prefix (see com-), + partis, genitive of pars "part" (see part (n.)).

compartment

noun

verb (used with object)

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Nearby words

Origin of compartment

Examples from the Web for compartment

compartment

noun

Word Origin for compartment

compartment