orientation

English

Etymology

From French orientation. By surface analysis, orient +‎ -ation.

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˌɔɹiɛnˈteɪʃən/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪʃən

Noun

orientation (countable and uncountable, plural orientations)

1. (countable) The determination of the relative position of something or someone.
2. (countable) The relative physical position or direction of something.
3. (uncountable) The construction of a Christian church to have its aisle in an east-west direction with the altar at the east end.
4. (countable) An inclination, tendency or direction.
5. (countable) The ability to orient, or the process of so doing.

   The homing instinct in pigeons is an example of orientation.

6. (countable) An adjustment to a new environment.
7. (countable) An introduction to a (new) environment.
   1. (education) Events to orient new students at a school; events to help new students become familiar with a school.
8. (typography, countable) The direction of print across the page; landscape or portrait.
9. (LGBT) Ellipsis of sexual orientation.
10. (mathematical analysis, differential geometry, countable) The choice of which ordered bases are "positively" oriented and which are "negatively" oriented on a real vector space.
11. (analytic geometry, topology, countable) The designation of a parametrised curve as "positively" or "negatively" oriented; the analogous description of a surface or hypersurface.

Antonyms

• disorientation

Derived terms

• family of orientation
• macro-level orientation
• micro-level orientation
• orientational
• orientation cage
• orientation camp
• orientation course
• reorientation
• romantic orientation
• sexual orientation

 

Related terms

• nonorientable
• orient
• orientable
• orientalism
• orientate
• orienteer

 

Translations

the act of orienting

• Bulgarian: ориентиране (bg) n (orientirane)
• Catalan: orientació (ca) f
• Dutch: oriëntatie (nl) f, oriëntering (nl)
• Finnish: suuntaaminen (fi)
• Greek: προσανατολισμός (el) m (prosanatolismós)
• Hungarian: tájékozódás (hu)
• Italian: orientamento (it) m
• Macedonian: ориенти́рање n (orientíranje)
• Portuguese: orientação (pt) f
• Romanian: orientare (ro) f
• Russian: ориентиро́вка (ru) f (orijentiróvka), ориенти́рование (ru) n (orijentírovanije)
• Spanish: orientación (es) f
• Tagalog: satungo
• Ukrainian: орієнта́ція f (orijentácija)

position relative to compass bearings

• Bulgarian: ориентация (bg) f (orientacija)
• Catalan: orientació (ca) f
• Dutch: oriëntatie (nl) f, plaatsbepaling (nl), richting (nl)
• Finnish: suunta (fi)
• Greek: προσανατολισμός (el) m (prosanatolismós)
• Hungarian: betájolás
• Italian: posizione (it) f
• Japanese: 方位 (ja) (hōi)
• Macedonian: ориента́ција f (orientácija)
• Portuguese: orientação (pt) f
• Russian: ориента́ция (ru) f (orijentácija)

the oriented construction of a Christian church

• Dutch: kerkbouwrichting
• Italian: orientamento (it) m
• Russian: размеще́ние (ru) n (razmeščénije), устано́вка (ru) f (ustanóvka)

an inclination, tendency or direction

• Azerbaijani: yonümlülük
• Catalan: orientació (ca) f
• Dutch: oriëntatie (nl) f, gerichtheid (nl)
• Finnish: taipumus (fi), suuntaus (fi)
• Hungarian: irány (hu), orientáció (hu)
• Italian: direzione (it) f
• Macedonian: скло́ност f (sklónost), на́клоност f (náklonost), ориента́ција f (orientácija)
• Romanian: orientare (ro) f, înclinație (ro) f
• Russian: ориента́ция (ru) f (orijentácija), накло́нность (ru) f (naklónnostʹ), скло́нность (ru) f (sklónnostʹ)
• Spanish: orientación (es) f
• Ukrainian: орієнта́ція f (orijentácija)
• Welsh: tueddfryd m

ability to orient

• Bulgarian: ориентация (bg) f (orientacija)
• Catalan: orientació (ca) f
• Dutch: oriënteringsvermogen (nl)
• Finnish: suunnistus (fi)
• German: Orientierungsvermögen n
• Italian: orientamento (it) m, orienteering (it)
• Polish: orientacja (pl) f
• Romanian: orientare (ro) f
• Spanish: orientación (es) f

introduction to a new environment

• Catalan: orientació (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 新生訓練／新生训练

• Dutch: oriëntatie (nl), voorlichting (nl)
• Finnish: perehdytys (fi), orientaatio (fi)
• Greek: κατατοπισμός (el) m (katatopismós)
• Italian: orientamento (it) m
• Japanese: 指導 (ja) (shidō), オリエンテーション (ja) (orientēshon)
• Korean: 오리엔테이션 (orienteisyeon)
• Portuguese: orientação (pt) f
• Romanian: orientare (ro) f
• Spanish: orientación (es) f
• Tagalog: lantangan

adjustment to a new environment

• Dutch: oriëntering (nl)
• Finnish: sopeutuminen (fi)
• Greek: προσαρμογή (el) f (prosarmogí)

the direction of print across the page

• Bulgarian: ориентация (bg) f (orientacija)
• Dutch: oriëntatie (nl)
• Finnish: suunta (fi)
• Greek: προσανατολισμός (el) m (prosanatolismós)
• Italian: direzione (it)
• Spanish: orientación (es) f

(analysis, differential geometry)

• Dutch: oriëntatie (nl)
• Finnish: orientaatio (fi)
• Greek: προσανατολισμός (el) m (prosanatolismós)
• Italian: orientazione f
• Russian: ориента́ция (ru) f (orijentácija)

(analytic geometry, topology)

• Dutch: oriëntatie (nl)
• Finnish: orientaatio (fi)
• Greek: προσανατολισμός (el) m (prosanatolismós)
• Italian: orientazione f
• Russian: ориента́ция (ru) f (orijentácija)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Arabic: ^{(please verify)} تَوْجِيه m (tawjīh)
• French: ^{(please verify)} orientation (fr) f
• German: ^{(please verify)} Orientierung (de) f
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} orientamento (it) m
• Korean: ^{(please verify)} 오리엔테이션 (orienteisyeon)
• Mandarin: ^{(please verify)} 方向 (zh) (fāngxiàng)
• Swedish: ^{(please verify)} orientering (sv) c

See also

• attraction

French

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔ.ʁjɑ̃.ta.sjɔ̃/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

orientation f (plural orientations)

1. orientation

Derived terms

• course d’orientation
• orientation sexuelle

Related terms

• orientable
• orientement m
• orienter
• orienteur m

Descendants

• → Turkish: oryantasyon

Further reading

• “orientation”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.