facility

American  

[fuh-sil-i-tee] / fəˈsɪl ɪ ti /

noun

• facilities
  plural

1. Often facilities

   1. something designed, built, installed, etc., to serve a specific function affording a convenience or service.

      transportation facilities;

      educational facilities;

      a new research facility.

   2. something that permits the easier performance of an action, course of conduct, etc..

      to provide someone with every facility for accomplishing a task;

      to lack facilities for handling bulk mail.

2. readiness or ease due to skill, aptitude, or practice; dexterity.

   to compose with great facility.

3. ready compliance.

   Her facility in organizing and directing made her an excellent supervisor.

4. an easy-flowing manner.

   facility of style.

5. the quality of being easily or conveniently done or performed.

6. Informal. Often facilities a restroom, especially one for use by the public, as in a theater or restaurant.

7. freedom from difficulty, controversy, misunderstanding, etc..

   facility of understanding.

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facility British  

/ fəˈsɪlɪtɪ /

noun

1. ease of action or performance; freedom from difficulty

2. ready skill or ease deriving from practice or familiarity

3. (often plural) the means or equipment facilitating the performance of an action

4. rare easy-going disposition

5. military an organization or building offering supporting capability

6. (usually plural) a euphemistic word for lavatory

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonfacility
  noun
• overfacility
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• facilities
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of facility

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English facilite, from Middle French or directly from Latin facilitās; see facile, -ity

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Explanation

Facility is a noun with several different meanings. Often, as in "storage facility," it's a place designed for a specific use, but it can also mean an effortlessness or ease with something. The new stadium is a great facility for showing off Olympic winter sports. At this level, all of the ice skaters show a facility that borders on magical. Likewise, the prison is a great facility for storing prisoners. Those prisoners showed a real facility for crime. Related to the French facile, which means "easy," a person who shows a facility for something makes it seem easy. This is cool, especially if that thing is difficult — or, as the French might say, difficile.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

facility facilities

Swift Coat, a maker of antireflective coated glass for satellites, plans to hire two or three workers by the end of the year at its facility in northern Phoenix.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026

Bel had visited the ICE facility in Cincinnati multiple times, hoping to get it off, but had no luck.

From Slate ● Oct. 26, 2026

The government will also confirm that it will work with mayors to design a new £1.5bn borrowing facility from 2028, which would allow them to access capital needed to support local priorities.

From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2026

In the lead-up to Nov. 3, the agency’s plan is to route ballots meant for local election offices to a nearby postal facility or directly to their destination.

From Salon ● Oct. 24, 2026

“Adam? It’s great just being here with you, sitting in the cold near a discharge facility, but do you think we could go over to Courtney’s house? Hmm, Ads?”

From "Landscape with Invisible Hand" by M.T. Anderson

Ohio, another state that has welcomed the facilities in recent years and used tax exemptions to lure tech investment, is also rethinking its role in the AI race.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026

Beyond the apartment itself, Hyde Midtown offers a lengthy roster of recreational facilities.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 26, 2026

But "colocation" facilities, which lease space to remote tenants without a local presence, brought fewer benefits.

From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2026

What’s more, green-fuel makers typically have to acquire the carbon dioxide they need from outside sources, such as ethanol and biomass facilities that produce the gas as a byproduct.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026

Today, the number hovers around 700, distributed among three facilities and one conservation camp, where low-risk youths do fire-suppression work.

From "The 57 Bus" by Dashka Slater

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Related Words

• accommodation
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• equipment
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