formation

American  

[fawr-mey-shuhn] / fɔrˈmeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of forming or the state of being formed.

   the formation of ice.

   Synonyms:

   organization, establishment

2. the manner in which a thing is formed; disposition of parts; formal structure or arrangement.

3. Military.

   1. a particular disposition of troops, as in columns, squares, etc.

   2. any required assembling of the soldiers of a unit.

4. Geology.

   1. a body of rocks classed as a stratigraphic unit for geologic mapping.

   2. the process of depositing rock or mineral of a particular composition or origin.

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formation British  

/ fɔːˈmeɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of giving or taking form, shape, or existence

2. something that is formed

3. the manner in which something is formed or arranged

4. 1. a formal arrangement of a number of persons or things acting as a unit, such as a troop of soldiers, aircraft in flight, or a football team

   2. ( as modifier )

      formation dancing

5. geology

   1. the fundamental lithostratigraphic unit

   2. a series of rocks with certain characteristics in common

6. ecology a community of plants, such as a tropical rainforest, extending over a very large area

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formation Scientific  

/ fôr-mā′shən /

1. A long, mappable body of rock that is recognizable by its physical characteristics and by its location within the rock record.

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Other Word Forms

• formational adjective
• misformation noun
• nonformation noun
• self-formation noun
• subformation noun
• superformation noun

Etymology

Origin of formation

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English formacioun, from Latin fōrmātiōn-, stem of fōrmātiō, from fōrmāt(us) “shaped” (past participle of fōrmāre “to shape, fashion”; form ) + -iō -ion

Example Sentences

The formation of new blood vessels can take weeks, and short bursts of oxygen are not enough to support lasting repair.

From Science Daily

By examining these formations, scientists reconstructed ancient climate patterns.

From Science Daily

That said, last week’s spinning top warrants attention, as such formations can signal potential exhaustion in the prevailing trend.

From Barron's

"Honestly, it's great. It's incredible. And obviously the outfits, like the sequined dress, and all the different formations of the blonde wig, I love it."

From BBC

Private-markets firms are laying out some serious cash to expand their capital formation teams focused on secondaries as the strategy gains traction among institutional and wealth investors.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• arrangement
• construction
• creation
• design
• development
• evolution
• forming
• pattern
• production
• structure