station

American  

[stey-shuhn] / ˈsteɪ ʃən /

noun

1. a place or position in which a person or thing is normally located.

   Synonyms:

   location, situation

2. a stopping place for trains or other land conveyances, for the transfer of freight or passengers.

3. the building or buildings at such a stopping place.

   Synonyms:

   terminal, depot

4. the district or municipal headquarters of certain public services.

   police station; fire station; postal station.

5. a place equipped for some particular kind of work, service, research, or the like.

   gasoline station; geophysical station.

6. the position, as of persons or things, in a scale of estimation, rank, or dignity; standing.

   the responsibility of persons of high station.

7. a position, office, rank, calling, or the like.

   Synonyms:

   employment, business, trade, occupation

8. Radio and Television.

   1. a studio or building from which broadcasts originate.

   2. a person or organization originating and broadcasting messages or programs.

   3. a specific frequency or band of frequencies assigned to a regular or special broadcaster.

      Tune to the Civil Defense station.

   4. the complete equipment used in transmitting and receiving broadcasts.

9. Military.

   1. a military place of duty.

   2. a semipermanent army post.

10. Navy. a place or region to which a ship or fleet is assigned for duty.

11. (formerly in India) the area in which the British officials of a district or the officers of a garrison resided.

12. Biology. a particular area or type of region where a given animal or plant is found.

13. Australian. a ranch with its buildings, land, etc., especially for raising sheep.

14. Surveying.

    1. Also called set-up.  Also called instrument station,.  a point where an observation is taken.

    2. a precisely located reference point.

    3. a length of 100 feet (30 meters) along a survey line.

15. a section or area assigned to a waiter, soldier, etc.; post.

    The waiter says this isn't his station.

16. stations of the cross.

17. Archaic. the fact or condition of standing still.

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verb (used with object)

1. to assign a station to; place or post in a station or position.

   Synonyms:

   fix, set, establish, locate, position

station British  

/ ˈsteɪʃən /

noun

1. the place or position at which a thing or person stands or is supposed to stand

2. 1. a place along a route or line at which a bus, train, etc, stops for fuel or to pick up or let off passengers or goods, esp one with ancillary buildings and services

      railway station

   2. ( as modifier )

      a station buffet

3. 1. the headquarters or local offices of an official organization such as the police or fire services

   2. ( as modifier ) See police station fire station

      a station sergeant

4. a building, depot, etc, with special equipment for some particular purpose

   power station

   petrol station

   television station

5. military a place of duty

   an action station

6. navy

   1. a location to which a ship or fleet is assigned for duty

   2. an assigned location for a member of a ship's crew

7. a radio or television channel

8. a position or standing, as in a particular society or organization

9. the type of one's occupation; calling

10. (in British India) a place where the British district officials or garrison officers resided

11. biology the type of habitat occupied by a particular animal or plant

12. a large sheep or cattle farm

13. surveying a point at which a reading is made or which is used as a point of reference

14. (often capital) RC Church

    1. one of the Stations of the Cross

    2. any of the churches ( station churches ) in Rome that have been used from ancient times as points of assembly for religious processions and ceremonies on particular days ( station days )

15. (plural) (in rural Ireland) mass, preceded by confessions, held annually in a parishioner's dwelling and attended by other parishioners

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verb

1. (tr) to place in or assign to a station

Synonym Usage

See appointment.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unstationed
  adjective
• restation
  verb (used with object)
• stational
  adjective
• unstation
  verb (used with object)
• interstation
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of station

1350–1400; < Latin statiōn- (stem of statiō ) a standing still, standing-place, equivalent to stat ( us ) (past participle of stāre to stand ) + -iōn- -ion; replacing Middle English stacioun < Anglo-French < Latin, as above

Explanation

A station is a regular stopping place, like a bus station, a train station, or even a radio station. To understand all the jobs the word station has, check out its past — station comes from the Latin stationem for "a job or position," via the word stare which means "to stand.” A station can be where trains “stand,” or a police station where police do their job. Your station in life is your social place. It’s also a verb — like when the military stations troops to protect a border.

Example Sentences

On the way to the police station, Digwa, speaking in Punjabi to his brother, agreed to pretend that he had acted in self-defense.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 3, 2026

It also questioned the company's decision to invest in setting up a radio station while making cuts to its main business.

From BBC • Jun. 1, 2026

“They can buy this property, build this data center, and I can do nothing to stop it,” Box Elder County Commissioner Lee Perry told area public radio station KUER.

From Slate • Jun. 1, 2026

A Mercedes-Benz station wagon that was about 11 years old when I got my hands on it.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 1, 2026

By five minutes before noon we were always back at the train station, standing at a point on the platform from which we had a good view of the tower of the Naval Observatory.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

Related Words

• depot
• house
• location
• site
• terminal