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delegation

n.
US //ˌdɛɫəˈɡeɪʃən// UK //dˌɛlɪɡˈeɪʃən// del·e·ga·tion
  1. 1 giving tasks to others (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    the act of giving some of your work, duties, or power to someone else.

    the assignment of authority or responsibility to another person, typically from a manager to a subordinate.

    Example

    Effective delegation is important for managers who want to avoid burnout.

    Example

    The CEO's failure to practice effective delegation resulted in a bottleneck where every minor decision required her personal approval.

    Usage

    Often used as an uncountable noun in management contexts.
  2. 2 a group of representatives (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    a group of people chosen to represent their company, country, or organization at a meeting.

    a body of delegates chosen to represent a larger group, especially at a formal conference or diplomatic event.

    Example

    A large delegation from France arrived for the climate summit.

    Example

    The trade delegation spent three days negotiating the terms of the new bilateral agreement with their counterparts in Tokyo.

    Usage

    Usually a countable noun.
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  1. 3 transferring a legal duty (n.)
    C1 Advanced Formal Technical Law

    the act of passing a legal duty or debt to another person.

    the act by which a debtor or obligor assigns the performance of an obligation to another party.

    Example

    The contract allows for the delegation of duties to a third party.

    Example

    In contract law, delegation refers to the transfer of duties, whereas assignment refers to the transfer of rights to receive benefits.

    Usage

    Refers specifically to the transfer of duties rather than rights.
  2. 4 software method dispatch (n.)
    C1 Advanced Technical Computing

    a way for one part of a computer program to use the functions of another part.

    a technique where an object handles a request by passing it to a second object, often used as an alternative to inheritance.

    Example

    The developer used delegation instead of inheritance to keep the code flexible.

    Example

    By employing delegation, the class can dynamically change its behavior at runtime by swapping the delegate object it refers to.

    Usage

    Common in object-oriented programming patterns.
Origin

Borrowed from Latin dēlēgātiō, dēlēgātiōnis, from dēlēgō: compare French délégation.

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