apposition

UK: /ˌæpəˈzɪʃ^ən/ US: /ˌæpəˈzɪʃən/ ,(ap′ə zish′ən)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

ap•po•si•tion /ˌæpəˈzɪʃən/   n. [uncountable]

1. Grammar in apposition, (of two consecutive nouns in a sentence) referring to the same person or thing. In the sentence "Washington, our first president, was born in Virginia'', the nouns Washington and our first president are in apposition

. ap•pos•i•tive /əˈpɑzɪtɪv/  adj. 

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

ap•po•si•tion  (ap′ə zish′ən), n. 

1. the act of placing together or bringing into proximity;
   juxtaposition.
2. the addition or application of one thing to another thing.
3. Grammar a syntactic relation between expressions, usually consecutive, that have the same function and the same relation to other elements in the sentence, the second expression identifying or supplementing the first. In Washington, our first president, the phrase our first president is in apposition with Washington.
4. Cell Biology [Biol.] growth of a cell wall by the deposition of new particles in layers on the wall. Cf. intussusception (def. 2).

• Latin apposit(us) (see apposite) + -iōn- -ion
• Late Latin appositiōn- (stem of appositiō)
• late Middle English apposicioun 1400–50

ap′po•si′tion•al, adj. 
ap′po•si′tion•al•ly, adv. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

apposition / ˌæpəˈzɪʃən/ noun

1. a putting into juxtaposition
2. a grammatical construction in which a word, esp a noun phrase, is placed after another to modify its meaning
3. growth in the thickness of a cell wall by the deposition of successive layers of material
   Compare intussusception2

ˌappoˈsitional adjective