disposition


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disposition

natural mental and emotional outlook or mood; characteristic attitude: has a mean disposition; an inclination: a gambling disposition; the final settlement of a matter
Not to be confused with:
deposition – removal from an office or position; the process of depositing: deposition of the documents with the Library of Congress; the giving of testimony under oath; a statement to be used in court in place of the spoken testimony of the witness
Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree

dis·po·si·tion

 (dĭs′pə-zĭsh′ən)
n.
1. One's usual mood; temperament: a sweet disposition.
2.
a. A habitual inclination; a tendency: a disposition to disagree.
b. A physical property or tendency: a swelling with a disposition to rupture.
3. Arrangement, positioning, or distribution: a cheerful disposition of colors and textures; a convoy oriented into a north-south disposition.
4. An act of disposing; a bestowal or transfer to another.
5. The power or liberty to control, direct, or dispose: the funds that were put at her disposition.

[Middle English disposicioun, from Old French disposition, from Latin dispositiō, dispositiōn-, from dispositus, past participle of dispōnere, to dispose; see dispose.]
Synonyms: disposition, temperament, character, personality, nature
These nouns refer to the combination of qualities that identify a person. Disposition is approximately equivalent to prevailing frame of mind or spirit: "A patronizing disposition always has its meaner side" (George Eliot).
Temperament applies broadly to the sum of emotions, habits, and beliefs that affect or determine a person's actions and reactions: "She is ... of a very serene and proud and dignified temperament" (H.G. Wells).
Character can refer to a defining or distinguishing set of personal traits: "Whatever his peculiarities of character and outlook, he was far and away the most conversable person in our circle" (Andrew Ryan).
More often, though, it emphasizes a person's positive moral and ethical qualities: "Education has for its object the formation of character" (Herbert Spencer).
Personality is the sum of distinctive traits that give a person individuality: an outgoing, friendly personality.
Nature denotes native or inherent qualities: "It is my habit,—I hope I may say, my nature,—to believe the best of people" (George W. Curtis).
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

disposition

(ˌdɪspəˈzɪʃən)
n
1. a person's usual temperament or frame of mind
2. (Psychology) a natural or acquired tendency, inclination, or habit in a person or thing
3. (Commerce) another word for disposal2, disposal3, disposal4, disposal5
4. (Philosophy) philosophy logic a property that consists not in the present state of an object, but in its propensity to change in a certain way under certain conditions, as brittleness which consists in the propensity to break when struck. Compare occurrent
5. archaic manner of placing or arranging
ˌdispoˈsitional adj
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

dis•po•si•tion

(ˌdɪs pəˈzɪʃ ən)

n.
1. the predominant tendency of one's spirits; characteristic attitude: a girl with a pleasant disposition.
2. state of mind regarding something; inclination: a disposition to gamble.
3. physical inclination or tendency: the disposition of ice to melt when heated.
4. arrangement or placing, as of troops or buildings.
5. final settlement of a matter.
6. bestowal, as by gift or sale.
7. power to dispose of a thing; control: funds at one's disposition.
8. regulation; management; dispensation: the disposition of God.
[1325–75; < Latin dispositiō=disposi-, variant s. of dispōnere to distribute (dis- dis-1 + pōnere to place) + -tiō -tion]
dis`po•si′tion•al, adj.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

disposition

1. Distribution of the elements of a command within an area; usually the exact location of each unit headquarters and the deployment of the forces subordinate to it.
2. A prescribed arrangement of the stations to be occupied by the several formations and single ships of a fleet, or major subdivisions of a fleet, for any purpose, such as cruising, approach, maintaining contact, or battle.
3. A prescribed arrangement of all the tactical units composing a flight or group of aircraft. See also deployment; dispersion.
4. (DOD only) The removal of a patient from a medical treatment facility by reason of return to duty, transfer to another treatment facility, death, or other termination of medical case.
Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms. US Department of Defense 2005.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.disposition - your usual mooddisposition - your usual mood; "he has a happy disposition"
aloneness, lonesomeness, solitariness, loneliness - a disposition toward being alone
nature - the complex of emotional and intellectual attributes that determine a person's characteristic actions and reactions; "it is his nature to help others"
physicality, animalism - preoccupation with satisfaction of physical drives and appetites
bloodthirstiness, bloodiness - a disposition to shed blood
heart, spirit - an inclination or tendency of a certain kind; "he had a change of heart"
nervousness - a sensitive or highly strung temperament
esprit de corps, team spirit, morale - the spirit of a group that makes the members want the group to succeed
moodiness - having temperamental and changeable moods
blood - temperament or disposition; "a person of hot blood"
cheerfulness, sunniness, cheer, sunshine - the quality of being cheerful and dispelling gloom; "flowers added a note of cheerfulness to the drab room"
uncheerfulness - not conducive to cheer or good spirits
perfectionism - a disposition to feel that anything less than perfect is unacceptable; "his perfectionism seemed excessive to his students"
permissiveness, tolerance - a disposition to allow freedom of choice and behavior
unpermissiveness, restrictiveness - a lack of permissiveness or indulgence and a tendency to confine behavior within certain specified limits
good nature - a cheerful, obliging disposition
agreeability, agreeableness - a temperamental disposition to be agreeable
ill nature - a disagreeable, irritable, or malevolent disposition
disagreeableness - an ill-tempered and offensive disposition
willingness - cheerful compliance; "he expressed his willingness to help"
involuntariness, unwillingness - the trait of being unwilling; "his unwillingness to cooperate vetoed every proposal I made"; "in spite of our warnings he plowed ahead with the involuntariness of an automaton"
friendliness - a friendly disposition
unsociability, unsociableness - an unsociable disposition; avoiding friendship or companionship
unfriendliness - an unfriendly disposition
calm, calmness, composure, equanimity - steadiness of mind under stress; "he accepted their problems with composure and she with equanimity"
discomposure - a temperament that is perturbed and lacking in composure
optimism - a general disposition to expect the best in all things
pessimism - a general disposition to look on the dark side and to expect the worst in all things
epicurism - the disposition and habits of an epicure
gourmandism - the disposition and habits of a gourmand
2.disposition - the act or means of getting rid of something
human action, human activity, act, deed - something that people do or cause to happen
appointment - (law) the act of disposing of property by virtue of the power of appointment; "she allocated part of the trust to her church by appointment"
comb-out - the act of carefully weeding out unwanted things or people; "the department got a good comb-out"
giving - disposing of property by voluntary transfer without receiving value in return; "the alumni followed a program of annual giving"
abandonment - the voluntary surrender of property (or a right to property) without attempting to reclaim it or give it away
mine disposal - the disposal of explosive mines
sewage disposal - the disposal of sewage
lending, loaning - disposing of money or property with the expectation that the same thing (or an equivalent) will be returned
3.disposition - an attitude of mind especially one that favors one alternative over others; "he had an inclination to give up too easily"; "a tendency to be too strict"
attitude, mental attitude - a complex mental state involving beliefs and feelings and values and dispositions to act in certain ways; "he had the attitude that work was fun"
direction - a general course along which something has a tendency to develop; "I couldn't follow the direction of his thoughts"; "his ideals determined the direction of his career"; "they proposed a new direction for the firm"
trend, drift, movement - a general tendency to change (as of opinion); "not openly liberal but that is the trend of the book"; "a broad movement of the electorate to the right"
Call - a special disposition (as if from a divine source) to pursue a particular course; "he was disappointed that he had not heard the Call"
denominationalism - the tendency, in Protestantism, to separate into religious denominations or to advocate such separations
devices - an inclination or desire; used in the plural in the phrase `left to your own devices'; "eventually the family left the house to the devices of this malevolent force"; "the children were left to their own devices"
sympathy, understanding - an inclination to support or be loyal to or to agree with an opinion; "his sympathies were always with the underdog"; "I knew I could count on his understanding"
favoritism, favouritism - an inclination to favor some person or group
proclivity, propensity, leaning - a natural inclination; "he has a proclivity for exaggeration"
bent, set - a relatively permanent inclination to react in a particular way; "the set of his mind was obvious"
literalism - a disposition to interpret statements in their literal sense
perseveration - the tendency for a memory or idea to persist or recur without any apparent stimulus for it
predisposition - an inclination beforehand to interpret statements in a particular way
favour, favor - an inclination to approve; "that style is in favor this season"
dislike, disfavor, disfavour, disapproval - an inclination to withhold approval from some person or group
partisanship, partiality - an inclination to favor one group or view or opinion over alternatives
impartiality, nonpartisanship - an inclination to weigh both views or opinions equally
4.disposition - a natural or acquired habit or characteristic tendency in a person or thing; "a swelling with a disposition to rupture"
property - a basic or essential attribute shared by all members of a class; "a study of the physical properties of atomic particles"
aptness, propensity - a disposition to behave in a certain way; "the aptness of iron to rust"; "the propensity of disease to spread"
mordacity - a disposition to biting
predisposition - a disposition in advance to react in a particular way
proneness - being disposed to do something; "accident proneness"
separatism - a disposition toward schism and secession from a larger group; the principles and practices of separatists; "separatism is a serious problem in Quebec"; "demands for some form of separatism on grounds of religion have been perceived as a threat to mainstream education"
tendency, inclination - a characteristic likelihood of or natural disposition toward a certain condition or character or effect; "the alkaline inclination of the local waters"; "fabric with a tendency to shrink"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

disposition

noun
1. character, nature, spirit, make-up, constitution, temper, temperament his friendly and cheerful disposition
2. tendency, inclination, propensity, habit, leaning, bent, bias, readiness, predisposition, proclivity, proneness They show no disposition to take risks.
3. arrangement, grouping, ordering, organization, distribution, disposal, placement the disposition of walls and entrances
4. control, management, direction, regulation, disposal to oversee the disposition of funds
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

disposition

noun
1. A person's customary manner of emotional response:
2. The combination of emotional, intellectual, and moral qualities that distinguishes an individual:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
طَبْع، مِزاج، أخْلاق
povaha
gemyttemperament
lunderni
noslieceraksturs

disposition

[ˌdɪspəˈzɪʃən] N
1. (= temperament) → carácter m, temperamento m
2. (= placing) [of ornaments, furniture] → disposición f, colocación f; [of troops] → despliegue m
3. (= inclination) → predisposición f (to a) I have no disposition to help himno estoy dispuesto a ayudarle
4. dispositionspreparativos mpl
to make one's dispositionshacer preparativos
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

disposition

[ˌdɪspəˈzɪʃən] n
(= temperament) → naturel m, tempérament m
to be of a nervous disposition → avoir un tempérament nerveux
(= inclination) a disposition to do sth → une tendance à faire qch
a disposition towards sth → une tendance envers qch
(formal) (= arrangement) → disposition f
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

disposition

n
(form: = arrangement) (of buildings, ornaments)Anordnung f; (of forces)Aufstellung f; (Jur: of money, property) → Verfügung f
(= temperament)Veranlagung f; her cheerful/friendly dispositionihre fröhliche/freundliche Art
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

disposition

[ˌdɪspəˈzɪʃn] n (frm)
a. (temperament) → indole f, temperamento; (tendency) disposition to sth/to do sthtendenza a qc/a fare qc, inclinazione f
he was always of a nervous disposition → è sempre stato ansioso di carattere
b. (arrangement) → disposizione f
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

disposition

(dispəˈziʃən) noun
personality. He has a pleasant disposition.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

dis·po·si·tion

n. disposición; tendencia.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
References in classic literature ?
The remaining points on which I propose to compare the federal and State governments, are the disposition and the faculty they may respectively possess, to resist and frustrate the measures of each other.
He would have heard of channels and sandbanks, of natural features of the land useful for sea-marks, of villages and tribes and modes of barter and precautions to take: with the instructive tales about native chiefs dyed more or less blue, whose character for greediness, ferocity, or amiability must have been expounded to him with that capacity for vivid language which seems joined naturally to the shadiness of moral character and recklessness of disposition. With that sort of spiced food provided for his anxious thought, watchful for strange men, strange beasts, strange turns of the tide, he would make the best of his way up, a military seaman with a short sword on thigh and a bronze helmet on his head, the pioneer post- captain of an imperial fleet.
Neither is there only a habit of goodness, directed by right reason; but there is in some men, even in nature, a disposition towards it; as on the other side, there is a natural malignity.
What is the fit disposition of the body will be better mentioned when we come to speak of the education of the child; we will just slightly mention a few particulars.
There was now an apparent disposition to relax; to widen the circle of confidences and give a more general tone to the conversation.
"No.--He thinks Marianne's affection too deeply rooted for any change in it under a great length of time, and even supposing her heart again free, is too diffident of himself to believe, that with such a difference of age and disposition he could ever attach her.
John May was of a morose and surly disposition, not easily moved to anger, but having an uncommon gift of sullen, implacable hate.
He was, indeed, a lad of a remarkable disposition; sober, discreet, and pious beyond his age; qualities which gained him the love of every one who knew him: while Tom Jones was universally disliked; and many expressed their wonder that Mr Allworthy would suffer such a lad to be educated with his nephew, lest the morals of the latter should be corrupted by his example.
Their natural antipathy of temperament made resentment an easy passage to hatred, and in Philip the transition seemed to have begun; there was no malignity in his disposition, but there was a susceptibility that made him peculiarly liable to a strong sense of repulsion.
The Alderman, being of a sensitive, retiring disposition, shrank from further comparison, and, strolling to another part of the garden, stole the camel.
Norris by its reverse in himself; clearly saw that he had but increased the evil by teaching them to repress their spirits in his presence so as to make their real disposition unknown to him, and sending them for all their indulgences to a person who had been able to attach them only by the blindness of her affection, and the excess of her praise.
It shows an evil disposition to take advantage of a friend in distress.

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