position

po|si|tion¹ W1S3 [pəˈzıʃən] n

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1¦(way of standing/sitting etc)¦

2¦(situation)¦

3¦(place where somebody/something is)¦

4¦(correct place)¦

5¦(direction)¦

6¦(opinion)¦

7¦(job)¦

8¦(level/rank)¦

9 be in a position to do something

10 be in no position to do something

11¦(race/competition)¦

12¦(sports)¦

13 jockey/manoeuvre/jostle for position

14¦(army)¦

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[Date: 1300-1400; : French; Origin: Latin positio, from positus, past participle of ponere 'to put']

1.) ¦(WAY OF STANDING/SITTING ETC)¦

the way someone is standing, sitting, or lying

▪ Lie in a comfortable position .

▪ Frankie shifted his position so that his knees would not become cramped.

sitting/kneeling/standing position

▪ I struggled up into a sitting position.

2.) ¦(SITUATION)¦ [C usually singular]

the situation that someone is in, especially when this affects what they can and cannot do

▪ I'm not sure what I would do if I were in your position .

▪ We're in a strong position , but we mustn't take victory for granted.

▪ Next week we will be in a much better position to comment.

▪ She is in the enviable position of having three job offers.

▪ You're putting me in rather a difficult position .

▪ We must negotiate from a position of strength .

▪ the company's precarious financial position

3.) ¦(PLACE WHERE SOMEBODY/SOMETHING IS)¦

the place where someone or something is, especially in relation to other objects and places

position of

▪ the position of the sun in the sky

▪ Our hotel was in a superb central position near St Mark's Square.

▪ the strategic position (=useful or important position) of Egypt in relation to the Arabian peninsula

4.) ¦(CORRECT PLACE)¦ [U and C]

the place where someone or something is needed or supposed to be

into position

▪ He pulled the ladder into position.

in/out of position

▪ All parking signs have now been placed in position.

5.) ¦(DIRECTION)¦

the direction in which an object is pointing

vertical/upright/horizontal position

▪ Make sure the container remains in an upright position.

▪ She turned the switch to the 'on' position.

6.) ¦(OPINION)¦

an opinion or judgment on a particular subject, especially the official opinion of a government, a political party, or someone in authority

= ↑attitude position on

▪ What's the party's position on tax reform?

▪ The principal took the position that the students didn't need music classes.

▪ I hope you'll reconsider your position .

7.) ¦(JOB)¦ formal

a job

sb's position as sth

▪ Bill took up his new position as Works Director in October.

position of

▪ She has held the position of Chief Financial Officer since 1992.

▪ Bruce is thinking of applying for the position .

▪ I'm sorry, the position has been filled (=someone has been found to do the job) .

see usage note ↑job

8.) ¦(LEVEL/RANK)¦ [U and C]

someone's or something's level, authority, or importance in a society or organization

the position of sb

▪ the position of women in society

position of power/authority/influence etc

▪ Many of his supporters used their positions of power for personal advantage.

▪ As a priest, he was in a position of trust .

abuse your position as sth

(=use your authority wrongly)

9.) be in a position to do sth

to be able to do something because you have the ability, money, or power to do it

▪ When I know all the facts, I'll be in a position to advise you.

10.) be in no position to do sth

to be unable to do something because you do not have the ability, money, or power to do it

▪ You're unemployed and in no position to support a family.

▪ Ned says I'm always late? He's in no position to talk (=should not criticize because he does the same thing) .

11.) ¦(RACE/COMPETITION)¦ [U and C]

the place of someone or something in a race or competition in relation to the other people or things

(in) 2nd/3rd/4th etc position

▪ Alesi finished in third position .

12.) ¦(SPORTS)¦

the area where someone plays in a sport, or the type of actions they are responsible for doing

▪ What position do you play ?

13.) jockey/manoeuvre/jostle for position

to try to get an advantage over other people who are all trying to succeed in doing the same thing

▪ Firms adopt different strategies as they jockey for position.

14.) ¦(ARMY)¦ [C usually plural]

a place where an army has put soldiers, guns etc

▪ an attack on the enemy positions

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COLLOCATES for sense 2

in somebody's position

in the same/a similar position

in a good/strong position (to do something)

in an enviable position (=in a situation that other people would like to be in)

in a difficult/awkward/impossible position

a position of strength (=a situation in which you can get what you want)

financial/legal position

strengthen/weaken somebody's position (=put someone in a better or worse situation)

WORD CHOICE: position, place, location, where, there

Place is a very general word for talking about where something or someone is : the place where they live | Put this in a safe place.

Position can be used to talk about the place where something is in relation to other things or places : the position of the table in the room

Location is used mainly in formal or business English to talk about where a building is : a house in a central location | the location of the new headquarters

In ordinary spoken English, it is more usual to use words like where, there, somewhere, anywhere to talk about the place where something or someone is : This is where (NOT the place where) I live. | My shoes were in the hall but they're not there (NOT in that place) now. |Let's have lunch somewhere different (NOT in a different place) today.

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position ²

position² v [T always + adverb/preposition]

to carefully put something in a particular position

▪ Position the cursor before the letter you want to delete.

position yourself

▪ I positioned myself where I could see the door.