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en·gage·ment (ĕn-gājmənt)
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n.
1.
a. The action of engaging or the state of being engaged: engagement in diplomacy.
b. The condition of being in working position: engagement of the transmission.
2.
a. A mutual promise to get married.
b. The period during which this promise is kept: a long engagement.
3. A pledge or obligation: meeting one's engagements.
4. A promise or agreement to be at a particular place at a particular time: a dinner engagement.
5.
a. Employment, especially for a specified time: his engagement with the firm.
b. A specific, often limited, period of employment: a speaking engagement.
6. A hostile encounter; a battle or skirmish.

Synonyms: engagement, appointment, assignation, date1, rendezvous, tryst
These nouns denote a commitment to appear at a certain time and place: a business engagement; a dental appointment; a secret assignation; a date to play tennis; a rendezvous of agents at the border; a lovers' tryst.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.