configuration

American  

[kuhn-fig-yuh-rey-shuhn] / kənˌfɪg yəˈreɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the relative disposition or arrangement of the parts or elements of a thing.

2. external form, as resulting from this; conformation.

3. Astronomy.

   1. the relative position or aspect of heavenly bodies.

   2. a group of stars.

4. Chemistry. an atomic spatial arrangement that is fixed by the chemical bonding in a molecule and that cannot be altered without breaking bonds (conformation ).

5. Computers.

   1. the way a computer or computer system is put together; a specific set and arrangement of internal and external components, including hardware, software, and devices.

   2. the way a software program or device is set up for a particular computer, computer system, or task; the specific settings for a program or device.

      configuration of your email program to work with your new ISP.

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configuration British  

/ kənˌfɪɡjʊˈreɪʃən /

noun

1. the arrangement of the parts of something

2. the external form or outline achieved by such an arrangement

3. physics chem

   1. Also called: conformation.  the shape of a molecule as determined by the arrangement of its atoms

   2. the structure of an atom or molecule as determined by the arrangement of its electrons and nucleons

4. psychol the unit or pattern in perception studied by Gestalt psychologists

5. computing the particular choice of hardware items and their interconnection that make up a particular computer system

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Other Word Forms

• configurational adjective
• configurationally adverb
• configurative adjective
• preconfiguration noun

Etymology

Origin of configuration

1550–60; < Late Latin configūrātiōn- (stem of configūrātiō ), equivalent to Latin configūrāt ( us ) shaped like its model, past participle of configūrāre to mold, shape ( con- con- + figūr ( a ) figure + -ātus -ate ¹ ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

Another familiar objection is framed as an accounting exercise: The effective tariff burden can be made lower than the headline rate if firms substitute products, re-source suppliers or alter configurations.

From The Wall Street Journal

Lloyd moved on to small, blinking, symmetrical configurations that, almost 60 years later, seem slightly old-fashioned.

From The Wall Street Journal

"When we let them evolve in time, we find that they can settle into stable configurations called solitons. These solitons could provide a purely geometric explanation of phenomena such as spontaneous symmetry breaking."

From Science Daily

A number of these planets are also part of multi-planet systems, a configuration that high-eccentricity migration typically disrupts, since that process can scatter or eject neighboring planets.

From Science Daily

Meanwhile, Three said it had "experienced disruption to voice services following an exceptional spike in network traffic triggered by a third-party software configuration change".

From BBC

Related Words

• composition
• contour
• shape
• structure