situation

[ sich-oo-ey-shuhn ]

noun

1. manner of being situated; location or position with reference to environment:

   The situation of the house allowed for a beautiful view.

   Synonyms: site

2. a place or locality.
3. condition; case; plight:

   He is in a desperate situation.

4. the state of affairs; combination of circumstances:

   The present international situation is dangerous.

5. a position or post of employment; job.
6. a state of affairs of special or critical significance in the course of a play, novel, etc.
7. Sociology. the aggregate of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors acting on an individual or group to condition behavioral patterns.

situation

/ ˌsɪtjʊˈeɪʃən /

noun

1. physical placement, esp with regard to the surroundings
2. 1. state of affairs; combination of circumstances
   2. a complex or critical state of affairs in a novel, play, etc
3. social or financial status, position, or circumstances
4. a position of employment; post

Usage

Situation is often used in contexts in which it is redundant or imprecise. Typical examples are: the company is in a crisis situation or people in a job situation. In the first example, situation does not add to the meaning and should be omitted. In the second example, it would be clearer and more concise to substitute a phrase such as people at work

Derived Forms

• ˌsituˈational, adjective

Other Words From

• situ·ation·al adjective
• situ·ation·al·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of situation¹

First recorded in 1480–90, situation is from the Medieval Latin word situātiōn- (stem of situātiō ). See situate, -ion

Idioms and Phrases

see no-win situation .

Synonym Study

See state. See position.

Example Sentences

I believe this is likely what is happening with a data rights and ownership situation between Google and advertisers.

From Search Engine Land

Both Sharon Whitehurst-Payne, the school board member who represents the area, and Barrera acknowledged the school did not handle the situation well.

From Voice of San Diego

To anyone who lives here, or anyone who’s watching, the situation is maddening and seems utterly unsustainable.

From MIT Technology Review

That’s certainly a situation that no one wants to be put in.

From MIT Technology Review

Other situations could give a magnetar a halo of electrons, but protons would come only from the magnetar itself.

From Science News

Her slight miscalculation of how to fix the situation leads to her driving around the gas pump.

From The Daily Beast

When the problem is already political, when the intolerable situation is the status quo?

From The Daily Beast

The girls send a cry for help…the situation of these girls is distressing.

From The Daily Beast

Among whites, the situation is also bad — in some ways, even worse.

From The Daily Beast

She had no say in it, but now is being forced to deal with an already challenging situation in front of strangers.

From The Daily Beast

We should have to admit that the new law does little or nothing to relieve such a situation.

From Project Gutenberg

In this situation we waited the motion of the enemy, without perceiving any advancement they made towards us.

From Project Gutenberg

He could not bear to open his dreadful situation to his Uncle David, nor to kill himself, nor to defy the vengeance of Longcluse.

From Project Gutenberg

He saw that the situation was worse than even he had bargained for, and all his irresolution began to return upon him.

From Project Gutenberg

And this fact seemed pregnant with evidence as to Gordon's state of mind; it did not appear to simplify the situation.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• case
• condition
• place
• plight
• position
• scene