location

American  

[loh-key-shuhn] / loʊˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. a place of settlement, activity, or residence.

   This town is a good location for a young doctor.

2. a place or situation occupied.

   a house in a fine location.

3. a tract of land of designated situation or limits.

   a mining location.

4. Movies. a place outside of the studio that is used for filming a movie, scene, etc.

5. Computers. any position on a register or memory device capable of storing one machine word.

6. the act of locating; state of being located.

7. Civil Law. a letting or renting.

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idioms

1. on location, engaged in filming at a place away from the studio, especially one that is or is like the setting of the screenplay.

   on location in Rome.

location British  

/ ləʊˈkeɪʃən /

noun

1. a site or position; situation

2. the act or process of locating or the state of being located

3. a place outside a studio where filming is done

   shot on location

4. 1. a Black African or Coloured township, usually located near a small town See also township

   2. (formerly) an African tribal reserve

5. computing a position in a memory capable of holding a unit of information, such as a word, and identified by its address

6. Roman law Scots law the letting out on hire of a chattel or of personal services

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Other Word Forms

• interlocation
  noun
• locational
  adjective
• locationally
  adverb
• nonlocation
  noun

Etymology

Origin of location

First recorded in 1585–95; from Latin locātiōn-, stem of locātiō “arrangement, rental,” in Late Latin: “placement,” equivalent to locate + -ion

Explanation

A location is a fixed place or position in space. If you are lost, you don't know your location. You can try to figure out your location by consulting a map or asking a friendly local who has a better sense of direction than you do. The noun location means the determination of something's position. If you are on a scavenger hunt, you have to determine the location of various random objects. So on your hunt, finding birthday candles may be easy, but good luck finding the location of a ferrule, unless you happen to know it is the metal band on a pencil that holds the eraser in place.

Example Sentences

Dante Vicino, the operations director, said Vivos still planned to deliver the amenities but is focused on building out individual units first in a remote location where labor is hard to find.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 26, 2026

But the event has raised eyebrows, both for the cost and for its location on the historic White House lawn.

From Barron's • May 26, 2026

A location has to reach a threshold temperature - 25C for northern and western areas and 28C in London and Home Counties - for three days in a row.

From BBC • May 26, 2026

Seeking a location where he could practice without bothering the neighbors in his Manhattan apartment, he found a perch on the Williamsburg Bridge.

From Los Angeles Times • May 26, 2026

Lippmann kept giving you these coordinates, until you were almost forced to identify the location of the ship—exactly what just about everyone else on Wall Street hoped you’d never do.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Related Words

• area
• district
• locale
• neighborhood
• part
• point
• position
• region
• scene
• section
• site
• situation
• spot
• station
• venue
• whereabouts