# department

Pronunciation: US say "di-PART-muhnt" /dɪˈpɑɹtmənt/; UK say "di-PAHT-muhnt" /dɪˈpɑːtm(ə)nt/

## Noun

1. A division of a large organization, such as a government, business, store, school or university, that deals with a particular subject or area of work.
   - Simple: One part of a big organization, like a company, store, school or government, that deals with one kind of work.
   - _The store moved its toy department to the top floor to make room for a larger kitchenware section._
   - _Returns and refunds are handled by a different department from sales._
2. A particular aspect or quality of someone or something, usually named by the word just before it, as in the looks department.
   - Simple: A particular area or quality that someone or something has.
   - _She has nothing to worry about in the talent department._
   - _The new phone falls short in the battery department._
3. A territorial division of a country, especially one of the administrative districts into which France is divided, similar to a county in the US or UK.
   - Simple: An area that a country is divided into for government, like the ones in France.
   - _The department of Var lies along the Mediterranean coast._
   - _Voters in every French department went to the polls on Sunday._
4. A distinct course of life, action, or study; a particular sphere of activity.
   - Simple: A certain area of life, work, or study.
   - _Marketing was never her department; she preferred the creative side._
   - _Handling complaints is firmly the manager's department._
5. A military subdivision of a country, used for organizing and commanding armed forces within a region.
   - Simple: A military area that a country was divided into.
   - _The general took charge of the military department covering the frontier._
   - _Troops from the northern department marched south to reinforce the line._

## Noun

6. The act of departing; a departure. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: The act of leaving or going away.

## Origin

Middle English departement (meaning "ceasing, end") was taken from Middle French département; the later senses came again from Modern French département, also borrowed as English département, its doublet.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/department (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).