formation

Borrowed from Old French formacion, from Latin fōrmātiō, from fōrmō (“form”, verb); see form as verb.

• Rhymes: -eɪʃən
• (US) IPA^(key): /fɔɹ.meɪ.ʃən/
• (UK) IPA^(key): /fə(ɹ).meɪ.ʃən/
• Hyphenation: for‧ma‧tion

formation (countable and uncountable, plural formations)

1. Something possessing structure or form.
2. The act of assembling a group or structure.
   • 2019, VOA Learning English (public domain)

     Some cloud formation was confirmed and rainfall was observed over some islands.

     Audio (US)

     (file)

3. (geology) A rock or face of a mountain.
4. (military) A grouping of military units or smaller formations under a command, such as a brigade, division, wing, etc.

   Synonyms: battle group, brigade group, task force, combat team

5. (military) An arrangement of moving troops, ships, or aircraft, such as a wedge, line abreast, or echelon. Often "in formation".

   Synonyms: tactical formation, battle formation

6. (sports) An arrangement of players designed to facilitate certain plays.
   • 2017 May 13, Barney Ronay, “Antonio Conte’s brilliance has turned Chelsea’s pop-up team into champions”, in the Guardian‎:

     N’Golo Kanté embodies both sides of this, a player whose early scratchiness was soothed with glorious results in the new 3-4-3 formation, allowed simply to be his best, most wonderfully mobile, diligent, destructive self.

7. The process of influencing or guiding a person to a deeper understanding of a particular vocation.
8. The process during which something comes into being and gains its characteristics.
9. (category theory) A structure made of two categories, two functors from the first to the second category, and a transformation from one of the functors to the other.

• form

• formation in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• formation in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

From Old French formacion, borrowed from Latin fōrmātiō, fōrmātiōnem. Cf. also the archaic formaison.

• IPA^(key): /fɔʁmasjɔ̃/

• Audio

  (file)

formation f (plural formations)

1. formation, forming, development
2. education; training

   Je suis gynécologue de formation. ― I'm a trainee gynecologist.

3. (military) formation

• autoformation

• forme

• “formation” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).