order

pronunciation

How to pronounce order in British English: UK [ˈɔːdə(r)] word uk audio image

How to pronounce order in American English: US [ˈɔːrdər] word us audio image

Noun:

(often plural) a command given by a superior (e.g., a military or law enforcement officer) that must be obeyed
a degree in a continuum of size or quantity
established customary state (especially of society)
logical or comprehensible arrangement of separate elements
a condition of regular or proper arrangement
a legally binding command or decision entered on the court record (as if issued by a court or judge)
a commercial document used to request someone to supply something in return for payment and providing specifications and quantities
a formal association of people with similar interests
a body of rules followed by an assembly
(usually plural) the status or rank or office of a Christian clergyman in an ecclesiastical hierarchy
a group of person living under a religious rule
(biology) taxonomic group containing one or more families
a request for food or refreshment (as served in a restaurant or bar etc.)
(architecture) one of original three styles of Greek architecture distinguished by the type of column and entablature used or a style developed from the original three by the Romans
putting in order
Verb:

give instructions to or direct somebody to do something with authority
make a request for something
issue commands or orders for
bring into conformity with rules or principles or usage; impose regulations
bring order to or into
place in a certain order
appoint to a clerical posts
arrange thoughts, ideas, temporal events, etc.
assign a rank or rating to

Word Origin

order: order: [13] Order comes via Old French ordre from Latin ōrdō. This originally denoted a ‘row, line, series, or other regular arrangement’, but it spawned a lot of other metaphorical meanings that have also come through into English, including ‘regularity’ and (from the general notion of a ‘rank’ or ‘class’) ‘ecclesiastical rank or office’ (preserved in English in ‘holy orders’ and in the derivatives ordain [13] and ordination [15]).The sense ‘command, directive’, first recorded in English in the mid-16th century, presumably comes from the notion of ‘keeping in order’. Other derivatives of ōrdō are represented by ordinance [14] and ordinary.=> ordain, ordinary, ordination

order (n.): early 13c., "body of persons living under a religious discipline," from Old French ordre "position, estate; rule, regulation; religious order" (11c.), from earlier ordene, from Latin ordinem (nominative ordo) "row, rank, series, arrangement," originally "a row of threads in a loom," from Italic root *ord- "to arrange, arrangement" (source of ordiri "to begin to weave;" compare primordial), of unknown origin. Meaning "a rank in the (secular) community" is first recorded c. 1300; meaning "command, directive" is first recorded 1540s, from the notion of "to keep in order." Military and honorary orders grew our of the fraternities of Crusader knights. Business and commerce sense is attested from 1837. In natural history, as a classification of living things, it is first recorded 1760. Meaning "condition of a community which is under the rule of law" is from late 15c. Phrase in order to (1650s) preserves etymological notion of "sequence." The word reflects a medieval notion: "a system of parts subject to certain uniform, established ranks or proportions," and was used of everything from architecture to angels. Old English expressed many of the same ideas with endebyrdnes. In short order "without delay" is from 1834, American English; order of battle is from 1769.

order (v.): c. 1200, "give order to, to arrange in order," from order (n.). Meaning "to give orders for or to" is from 1540s. Related: Ordered; ordering.

vt.