situation

American  

[sich-oo-ey-shuhn] / ˌsɪtʃ uˈeɪ ʃən /

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.

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situation British  

/ 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

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situation Idioms  

1. see no-win situation.

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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

Related Words

See state. See position.

Other Word Forms

• situational adjective
• situationally adverb

Etymology

Origin of situation

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

Example Sentences

"We are good at adapting to situations, not thinking about it until it happens. There is no point in worrying - be prepared, then adapt."

From BBC

She also recommended a public awareness campaign with the message of "escape, hide, tell" when there is a situation with an armed offender.

From BBC

In recent months, executives have discussed potential partnerships with game companies, but shelved the topic until a new CEO started, according to a person familiar with the situation.

From The Wall Street Journal

It called for lessons on using AI to comb transcripts of earnings calls and catch deepfake videos in breaking-news situations.

From The Wall Street Journal

The nine-member committee only narrowly voted for a cut in December and gave a fairly cautious view of the situation.

From BBC

Related Words

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