compartment

[kuhm-pahrt-muhnt]

noun

1. a part or space marked or partitioned off.

   Synonyms: section, division

2. a separate room, section, etc..

   a baggage compartment.

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

4. a separate aspect, function, or the like.

   the compartments of the human mind.

5. Architecture.,  a distinct major division of a design.

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

verb (used with object)

1. to divide into compartments.

compartment

/ kəmˈpɑːtmənt, ˌkɒmpɑːtˈmɛntəl /

noun

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

2. any separate part or section

   a compartment of the mind

3. a small storage space; locker

Other Word Forms

• compartmentally adverb
• compartmental adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of compartment¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of compartment¹

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

Example Sentences

Fewer chances are taken with the Mona Lisa these days: the painting, perhaps the most renowned in the museum's collection, hangs in a high-security glass compartment.

Read more on BBC

Bright flames were seen coming from an overhead storage compartment in an image taken by a passenger and published by state-affiliated domestic media outlet Jimu News.

Read more on Barron's

The complaint said they found a lighter inside the glove compartment of the suspect’s car on Jan. 24.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The family have changed a kitchen unit that once housed their bin so that it now has a number of different compartments for various types of rubbish.

Read more on BBC

Wander, for instance, to a compartment at the ship’s bow, and you may hear conspiratorial whispers.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• alcove 
• carriage 
• cell 
• chamber 
• cubicle 
• locker 
• slot