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o·ri·en·ta·tion (ôr′ē-ĕn-tāshən, -ən-)
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n.
1. The act of orienting or the state of being oriented.
2. Location or position relative to the points of the compass.
3. The construction of a church so that its longitudinal axis has an east-west direction with the main altar usually at the eastern end.
4. The direction followed in the course of a trend, movement, or development.
5. A tendency of thought; a general inclination: a Marxist orientation.
6. Sexual orientation.
7.
a. An adjustment or adaptation to a new environment, situation, custom, or set of ideas.
b. Introductory instruction concerning a new situation: orientation for incoming students.
8. Psychology Awareness of the objective world in relation to one's self.
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.

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