for·ma·tion (fôr-m  sh n)n. 1. The act or process of forming something or of taking form. 2. Something formed: beautiful cloud formations. 3. The manner or style in which something is formed; structure: the distinctive formation of the human eye. 4. A specified arrangement or deployment, as of troops. 5. Geology The primary unit of lithostratigraphy, consisting of a succession of strata useful for mapping or description. for·ma tion·al adj. |
formation [fɔːˈmeɪʃən]
n
1. the act of giving or taking form, shape, or existence
2. something that is formed
3. the manner in which something is formed or arranged
4. a formal arrangement of a number of persons or things acting as a unit, such as a troop of soldiers, aircraft in flight, or a football team
5. (Earth Sciences / Geological Science) Geology
a. the fundamental lithostratigraphic unit
b. a series of rocks with certain characteristics in common
6. (Life Sciences & Allied Applications / Botany) Ecology a community of plants, such as a tropical rainforest, extending over a very large area
formational adj
| formation (fôr-mshn) A long, mappable body of rock that is recognizable by its physical characteristics and by its location within the rock record. |
Formation a formal assembly of troops; arrangement of rocks in a geological setting, 1815.
Examples: formation of clouds, 1808; of troop, 1796.
1. An ordered arrangement of troops and/or vehicles for a specific purpose.
2. An ordered arrangement of two or more ships, units, or aircraft proceeding together under a commander.
ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
| Noun | 1. |  formation - an arrangement of people or things acting as a unit; "a defensive formation"; "a formation of planes"arrangement - an orderly grouping (of things or persons) considered as a unit; the result of arranging; "a flower arrangement" flight - a formation of aircraft in flight military formation - a formation of troops backfield - the offensive football players who line up behind the linemen secondary - the defensive football players who line up behind the linemen line - a formation of people or things one behind another; "the line stretched clear around the corner"; "you must wait in a long line at the checkout counter" line - a formation of people or things one beside another; "the line of soldiers advanced with their bayonets fixed"; "they were arrayed in line of battle"; "the cast stood in line for the curtain call" center - the middle of a military or naval formation; "they had to reinforce the center" head - the front of a military formation or procession; "the head of the column advanced boldly"; "they were at the head of the attack" rear - the back of a military formation or procession; "infantrymen were in the rear" |
| 2. | formation - the act of fabricating something in a particular shape manufacturing, manufacture, fabrication - the act of making something (a product) from raw materials; "the synthesis and fabrication of single crystals"; "an improvement in the manufacture of explosives"; "manufacturing is vital to Great Britain" filing - the act of using a file (as in shaping or smoothing an object) forging - shaping metal by heating and hammering metalworking, metalwork - the activity of making things out of metal in a skillful manner granulation - the act of forming something into granules or grains; "the granulation of medicines" turning - the activity of shaping something on a lathe | |
| 3. | formation - the act of forming or establishing something; "the constitution of a PTA group last year"; "it was the establishment of his reputation"; "he still remembers the organization of the club" commencement, start, beginning - the act of starting something; "he was responsible for the beginning of negotiations" unionisation, unionization - act of forming labor unions; "the issue underlying the strike was unionization" collectivisation, collectivization - the organization of a nation or economy on the basis of collectivism communisation, communization - the organization of a nation of the basis of communism federation - the act of constituting a political unity out of a number of separate states or colonies or provinces so that each member retains the management of its internal affairs colonisation, colonization, settlement - the act of colonizing; the establishment of colonies; "the British colonization of America" | |
| 4. |  formation - (geology) the geological features of the earthobject, physical object - a tangible and visible entity; an entity that can cast a shadow; "it was full of rackets, balls and other objects" geology - a science that deals with the history of the earth as recorded in rocks aquifer - underground bed or layer yielding ground water for wells and springs etc beach - an area of sand sloping down to the water of a sea or lake cave - a geological formation consisting of an underground enclosure with access from the surface of the ground or from the sea cliff, drop-off, drop - a steep high face of rock; "he stood on a high cliff overlooking the town"; "a steep drop" delta - a low triangular area of alluvial deposits where a river divides before entering a larger body of water; "the Mississippi River delta"; "the Nile delta" diapir - a domed rock formation where a core of rock has moved upward and pierced through the more brittle overlying strata folium - a thin layer or stratum of (especially metamorphic) rock foreshore - the part of the seashore between the highwater mark and the low-water mark ice mass - a large mass of ice lakefront - land bordering a lake massif - a block of the earth's crust bounded by faults and shifted to form peaks of a mountain range monocline - a geological formation in which all strata are inclined in the same direction mouth - the point where a stream issues into a larger body of water; "New York is at the mouth of the Hudson" natural depression, depression - a sunken or depressed geological formation natural elevation, elevation - a raised or elevated geological formation oceanfront - land bordering an ocean chain of mountains, mountain chain, mountain range, range of mountains, range, chain - a series of hills or mountains; "the valley was between two ranges of hills"; "the plains lay just beyond the mountain range" relict - geological feature that is a remnant of a pre-existing formation after other parts have disappeared ridge - a long narrow natural elevation on the floor of the ocean shore - the land along the edge of a body of water incline, slope, side - an elevated geological formation; "he climbed the steep slope"; "the house was built on the side of a mountain" mineral vein, vein - a layer of ore between layers of rock crater, volcanic crater - a bowl-shaped geological formation at the top of a volcano wall - a vertical (or almost vertical) smooth rock face (as of a cave or mountain) groundwater level, water table, water level - underground surface below which the ground is wholly saturated with water; "spring rains had raised the water table" | |
| 5. | formation - a particular spatial arrangement raster - the rectangular formation of parallel scanning lines that guide the electron beam on a television screen or a computer monitor split - (tenpin bowling) a divided formation of pins left standing after the first bowl; "he was winning until he got a split in the tenth frame" placement, arrangement - the spatial property of the way in which something is placed; "the arrangement of the furniture"; "the placement of the chairs" | |
| 6. | formation - natural process that causes something to form; "the formation of gas in the intestine"; "the formation of crystals"; "the formation of pseudopods" encrustation, incrustation - the formation of a crust natural action, natural process, action, activity - a process existing in or produced by nature (rather than by the intent of human beings); "the action of natural forces"; "volcanic activity" reticulation - (photography) the formation of a network of cracks or wrinkles in a photographic emulsion | |
| 7. | formation - creation by mental activity; "the formation of sentences"; "the formation of memories" creating by mental acts - the act of creating something by thinking affixation - formation of a word by means of an affix |
formation
noun
1. establishment, founding, forming, setting up, starting, production, generation, organization, manufacture, constitution the formation of a new government
2. development, shaping, constitution, evolution, moulding, composition, compilation, accumulation, genesis, crystallization The formation of my character and temperament.
3. arrangement, grouping, figure, design, structure, pattern, rank, organization, array, disposition, configuration He was flying in formation with seven other jets.
Translations
formation [fɔːrˈmeɪʃən] n
(= creation) [government, organization] → formation f; [club] → création f; [character] → formation f; [idea] → développement m; [rocks, lakes] → formation f rock formation, capital formation
(= pattern) to fly in formation (AVIATION) → voler en formation
formation flying n → vol m en formation
formation flying n → vol m en formation
formation
formation:
n
(= act of forming) → Formung f, → Gestaltung f; (Gram: of plural etc) → Bildung f; (of character) → Formung f; (of government, committee) → Bildung f; (of company, society) → Gründung f; (of desire, idea, impression, habit etc) → Entwicklung f; (of friendship) → Schließen nt, → Anknüpfung f; (of opinion) → Bildung f; (of plan) → Entwurf m
(of aircraft, dancers, troops) → Formation f; battle formation → Gefechtsaufstellung f; in close formation (Aviat) → im geschlossenen Verband; to dance in formation → in Formation tanzen
(Geol) → Formation f
formation:
formation dancing
n → Formationstanzen nt
formation flying
n → Formationsflug m
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