position

po|si|tion1 [ pə`zıʃn ] noun count ***

▸ 1 way body/thing is placed

▸ 2 general situation

▸ 3 where something is

▸ 4 opinion about issue

▸ 5 job in company

▸ 6 rank/status

▸ 7 place in list etc.

▸ + PHRASES

1. ) the way that someone's body is placed:

I dragged myself into a sitting position.

First, get yourself into a comfortable position.

a ) the way that an object is placed:

The engine is mounted in the upright position.

Raise the lever to the up position to get the water to flow.

b ) a way of placing your body in BALLET or YOGA

c ) a way that two people place their bodies when they are having sex

2. ) used for talking about how much money a person or organization has:

What is your current financial position?

strengthen/improve/consolidate someone's position (=make someone's financial situation better): An injection of capital strengthened the company's position.

a ) a situation that a particular person is in:

I wouldn't brag about that if I were in your position.

Someone in their position can't afford to take that kind of risk.

be in a position to do something: I'm not in a position to say who my sources are.

b ) a general situation:

The position is that we only accept new club members once a year.

3. ) where something is in relation to other things:

Place the plant in a bright sunny position.

position of: Here is a chart showing the positions of the planets.

a ) in team sports, the part of the field where a particular player plays:

What position do you play? Second Base.

4. ) an opinion about an important issue:

position on: No one was sure of his position on any issue.

take a position: Do you expect the administration to take a position one way or another on this legislation?

take the position that: The agency takes the position that the government's specifications were deficient.

5. ) a job in a company:

There are 12 women in management positions within the company.

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

6. ) someone's rank or status in an organization or in society:

a position of authority/responsibility/power: Such behavior was clearly not acceptable for someone in a position of authority.

abuse your position (=try to get an unfair advantage from your position): He had seriously abused his position as a doctor by releasing patients' personal details.

position within: Stone's position within the party was strengthened after her speech at last year's convention.

7. ) the place that someone or something has in a list or competition:

Following behind in fourth position is Jeff Gordon.

in/into position

in or into the correct place:

Leave the knee brace in position until the doctor tells you to remove it.

We watched the cameras move into position.

out of position

out of the correct place:

The car had knocked over some traffic cones that were out of position on the road.

╾ po|si|tion|al adjective:

There are two positional switches to the team.

position

po|si|tion 2 [ pə`zıʃn ] verb transitive **

1. ) to put something in a particular place:

Position the microphone as close as possible to the source of the sound.

Once the paper is positioned correctly, the printer should print with no problems.

2. ) BUSINESS to make people think of a product in a particular way:

Research can help a company to position its product for maximum public exposure.

be well/ideally positioned

to be in a good situation to be able to do something:

The brand is well positioned to succeed in the Spanish market.