ENGLISH
REFERENCE

disposal

n. uncountable
C1 Advanced Oxford US //dɪˈspoʊzəɫ// UK //dɪspˈəʊzəl// dis·pos·al Slang

n. the act of getting rid of something you no longer want or need. It can also mean having something available for you to use whenever you like.

n. the act or process of getting rid of something; also, the power or opportunity to make use of something. Often appears in the prepositional phrase 'at one's disposal'.


SIMPLE

The safe disposal of batteries is important for the environment.

CONTEXTUAL

After the renovation, the contractors handled the disposal of all the old wood and broken tiles.

COMPLEX

With a vast library of digital resources at her disposal, the researcher was able to cross-reference the historical documents without leaving her home office.

Synonyms
Origin

From dispose + -al.

Usage

Commonly used in the fixed phrase 'at one's disposal' to indicate availability. When referring to the act of throwing things away, it is often preceded by an adjective like 'waste' or 'sewage'.

Pitfall

the disposal for the trashthe disposal of the trashThe noun requires the preposition 'of' when describing the act of getting rid of a specific object.

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