What does "position" mean?
A place or location.
Position
/pəˈzɪʃ.n̩/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Top 500 ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A place or location.
- Grammar: position is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: location, perspective, place, post.
- Useful contrasts: disagreement, dismiss, displace.
- Usage evidence: I understand your position perfectly.
How to use "position"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "position" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "position" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "position" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "position" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "position" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "location" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "position", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A place or location.
"Train positions and speeds were established by a track magnet at each milepost, which produced a suitable mark on the punched recording tape whenever a train passed."
- 2 the act of positing; an assumption taken as a postulate or axiom wordnet
- 3 A post of employment; a job.
- 4 a job in an organization wordnet
- 5 A status or rank.
"Chief of Staff is the second-highest position in the army."
Show 24 more definitions
- 6 the post or function properly or customarily occupied or served by another wordnet
- 7 An opinion, stand, or stance.
"My position on this issue is unchanged."
- 8 (in team sports) the role assigned to an individual player wordnet
- 9 A posture.
"Stand in this position, with your arms at your side."
- 10 the act of putting something in a certain place wordnet
- 11 A situation suitable to perform some action. figuratively
"The school is not in a position to provide day-care after 4:00 pm."
- 12 the spatial property of a place where or way in which something is situated wordnet
- 13 A place on the playing field, together with a set of duties, assigned to a player.
"Stop running all over the field and play your position!"
- 14 the arrangement of the body and its limbs wordnet
- 15 An amount of securities, commodities, or other financial instruments held by a person, firm, or institution.
"long position"
- 16 a rationalized mental attitude wordnet
- 17 A commitment, or a group of commitments, such as options or futures, to buy or sell a given amount of financial instruments, such as securities, currencies or commodities, for a given price.
- 18 a way of regarding situations or topics etc. wordnet
- 19 A method of solving a problem by one or two suppositions; also called the rule of trial and error.
- 20 an item on a list or in a sequence wordnet
- 21 The full state of a chess game at any given turn.
- 22 an opinion that is held in opposition to another in an argument or dispute wordnet
- 23 The order in which players are seated around the table.
- 24 the particular portion of space occupied by something wordnet
- 25 A pin; a connector.
- 26 the appropriate or customary location wordnet
- 27 a point occupied by troops for tactical reasons wordnet
- 28 a condition or position in which you find yourself wordnet
- 29 the relative position or standing of things or especially persons in a society wordnet
Verb
- 1 To put into place.
"While other small nations with large banking sectors, such as Iceland and Ireland, have been undone by their reckless lending practices, the debt-free Channel Islands have always positioned themselves as dependable repositories of riches."
- 2 put into a certain place or abstract location wordnet
- 3 cause to be in an appropriate place, state, or relation wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"I understand your position perfectly."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "position"?
Common synonyms include: location, perspective, place, post, stance, a priori principle.
How do you use "position" in a sentence?
I understand your position perfectly.
How do you pronounce "position"?
Pronounced /pəˈzɪʃ.n̩/.
Etymology
From Middle English posicioun, from Old French posicion, from Latin positiō (“a putting, position”), from positus (“placed, situated”), past participle of pōnō (“to place”); see ponent. Compare apposition, composition, deposition; see pose.