depot

American  

[dee-poh, dep-oh] / ˈdi poʊ, ˈdɛp oʊ /

noun

• depots
  plural

1. a railroad station.

   Synonyms:

   terminal

2. a bus station.

   Synonyms:

   terminal

3. Military.

   1. a place in which supplies and materials are stored for distribution.

   2. (formerly) a place where recruits are assembled for classification, initial training, and assignment to active units.

4. a storehouse or warehouse, as a building where freight is deposited.

5. Physiology. a place where body products not actively involved in metabolic processes are accumulated, deposited, or stored.

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depot British  

/ ˈdiːpəʊ, ˈdɛpəʊ /

noun

1. a storehouse or warehouse

2. military

   1. a store for supplies

   2. a training and holding centre for recruits and replacements

3. a building used for the storage and servicing of buses or railway engines

4. 1. a bus or railway station

   2. ( as modifier )

      a depot manager

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adjective

1. (of a drug or drug dose) designed for gradual release from the site of an injection so as to act over a long period

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subdepot
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• depots
  plural

Etymology

Origin of depot

1785–95; < French dépot < Latin dēpositum, noun use of neuter of dēpositus; see deposit

Explanation

A depot is a place where things are stored in large quantities for future use. Your office might have a depot in the back where supplies are stored. Depot came into English from the French word dépôt, meaning "a deposit, place of deposit." A depot can be a place like a warehouse where items are temporarily deposited, but we also use it for a train or bus station. In this case, think of it as a place where a many passengers are being temporarily housed. Your bus trip might require you to get off one bus at a big depot, and transfer to another.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

depot depots

Incorporated in 1938, Shafter has roots as a railroad depot; the high-speed rail project would replace existing Amtrak and freight tracks with a wider, elevated line surrounded by 35-foot walls.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026

Waymo declined to comment on how many of its vehicles can park at the Uber depot at a time.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026

The city administration reported that an oil depot was struck by unmaned aerial vehicles, causing a fire.

From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026

In the Moscow region -- where an oil depot was struck in addition to another Wildberries warehouse -- one person died in hospital, said regional governor Andrei Vorobyov.

From Barron's ● Jul. 18, 2026

The Manifest Victory Quilt will be auctioned off to the highest bidder during the New Year’s festivities at the Manifest depot following the president’s quilt signing.

From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool

"There were ammunition depots buried in land within our municipality, but we didn't know it, and they exploded", Zaninetti told France Info.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas of using civilian infrastructure to conceal weapons and fighters, and said it had destroyed arms depots across Gaza.

From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026

It will also administer and implement a process to decommission and store heavy weapons, military production sites, depots of weapons, and tunnels.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026

Hamas is also expected to hand over maps of its tunnels, weapons factories and depots, according to the draft of the agreement.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

Here, along with a men’s night bomber regiment, Marina’s recruits would fly low over the German troops in the dark, bombing their headquarters and ammunition and supply depots on the southern end of the front.

From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein

Related Words

• armory
• garage
• store
• storehouse
• terminal
• yard