ENGLISH
REFERENCE

orient

v.
C1 Advanced US //ˈɔɹiˌɛnt// UK //ˈɔːɹiənt// ori·ent Academic Archaic Literary

v. to find your position or direction in a new place. You also use it to help someone get used to a new situation or job.

v. to align or position something relative to the points of a compass or other specified positions; to familiarise someone with new surroundings or circumstances.


SIMPLE

It takes a few minutes to orient yourself in a new city.

CONTEXTUAL

The first week of the semester is designed to orient new students to the campus and its digital resources.

COMPLEX

The architect chose to orient the building toward the south to maximise natural light and reduce heating costs during the winter months.

Synonyms
Antonyms
Origin

See orient.

Usage

Often used reflexively ('orient oneself') or in the passive voice ('be oriented toward'). Takes the preposition 'to' or 'toward'.

Pitfall

He needs to orientate to the new system.He needs to orient himself to the new system.While 'orientate' is a valid British variant, 'orient' is more common in academic writing; both usually require a reflexive pronoun when referring to a person finding their way.

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