orientation

From French orientation. Surface etymology is orient +‎ -ation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˌɔɹiɛnˈteɪʃən/
• Rhymes: -eɪʃən

orientation (countable and uncountable, plural orientations)

1. (countable) The determination of the relative position of something or someone.
2. (countable) The relative physical position or direction of something.
3. (uncountable) The construction of a Christian church to have its aisle in an east-west direction with the altar at the east end.
4. (countable) An inclination, tendency or direction.
5. (countable) The ability to orient.

   The homing instinct in pigeons is an example of orientation.

6. (countable) An adjustment to a new environment.
7. (countable) An introduction to a (new) environment.
8. (typography, countable) The direction of print across the page; landscape or portrait.
9. (mathematical analysis, differential geometry, countable) The choice of which ordered bases are "positively" oriented and which are "negatively" oriented on a real vector space.
10. (analytic geometry, topology, countable) The designation of a parametrised curve as "positively" or "negatively" oriented (or "nonorientable"); the analogous description of a surface or hypersurface.
11. (education) Events to orient new students at a school; events to help new students become familiar with a school.

• disorientation

• IPA^(key): /ɔ.ʁjɑ̃.ta.sjɔ̃/

orientation f (plural orientations)

1. orientation

• orientable
• orientement m
• orienter
• orienteur m

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