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order

n. C / U
A1 Beginner Oxford US //ˈɔɹdɝ// UK //ˈɔːdɐ// or·der General-service

n. a request for food or drinks in a restaurant, or a request for a company to send you goods. It can also mean the way things are organized in a neat or logical line.

n. a request for goods or services made by a customer to a vendor; also, the arrangement or disposition of people or things in relation to each other according to a particular sequence or method.


SIMPLE

The waiter takes our order for two coffees.

CONTEXTUAL

After placing an online order for a new laptop, I received a confirmation email with the tracking number.

COMPLEX

The librarian insisted that the historical archives be kept in chronological order to assist researchers in tracing the development of local laws over the last century.

Synonyms
Antonyms
Origin

From Middle English ordre, from Old French ordre, ordne, ordene (“order, rank”), from Latin ōrdinem, accusative of ōrdō (“row, rank, regular arrangement”, literally “row of threads in a loom”), from Proto-Italic ordō (“to arrange”), probably ultimately from Proto-Indo-European h₂or-d-, from *h₂er-. Related to Latin ōrdior (“begin”, literally “begin to weave”). In sense “request for purchase”, compare bespoke. Doublet of ordo.

Usage

Countable when referring to a specific request for goods; uncountable when referring to a state of neatness or social stability.

Pitfall

I made an order of a pizzaI placed an order for a pizzaIn a commercial context, the standard collocation is to 'place' an order 'for' an item.

Idioms5 entries

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