Meaning of order in English

call something to order After some heated discussion, the chairperson called the meeting to order (= told everyone to stop talking so that the meeting could continue).

in order UK Is it in order (= allowed) for me to park my car outside the building?

order! formal

an expression used in a parliament or a formal meeting to get people's attention and make them stop talking, so that the meeting or discussion can start or continue

More examplesFewer examples

There has been a complete breakdown in law and order.
The army has been brought in to maintain order in the region.
Would you say the government's stance on law and order has softened?
The self-declared guardians of law and order held a press conference.
Without realistic sanctions, some teachers have difficulty keeping order in the classroom.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Social order & disorder

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Linguistics: interjections

order noun (SYSTEM)

C2 [ C ]

a social or political system:

The collapse of Communism at the end of the 1980s encouraged hopes of a new world order.

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Systems of government

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the old order

the way that things were done in the past, especially in society or in politics:

Building the society of tomorrow required the destruction of the old order.

The country's budding reform movement is challenging the old order.

In the early 20th century many people decided it was time to sweep away the old order.

After Napoleon was defeated in 1815 the old order returned.

The old order was changing: Louisiana public schools were being integrated, and African American families were given a choice to send their children to any school.

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In the past

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order noun (RELIGION)

[ C, + sing/pl verb ]

a group of people who join together for religious or similar reasons and live according to particular rules:

religious orders Most religious orders place great emphasis on obedience and hard work.

holy orders

monks of the Cistercian/Franciscan Order

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Religious people: monks & nuns

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order noun (HONOUR)

[ S, + sing/pl verb ]

a group that people are made members of as a reward for services they have done for their country:

He was made a knight of the Order of the Garter.

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Royalty, aristocracy & titles

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order noun (TYPE)

[ U ]

the type or size of something:

These were problems of a completely different order from anything we had faced before.

of the highest order formal No successful business can be run without skills of the highest order (= great skills).

of the order of UK (also mainly UK in the order of); (US on the order of)

approximately:

The cost will be something in the order of $500.

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General words for size and amount

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Categories and varieties

order noun (BIOLOGY)

[ C ] biology specialized

(used in the classification of plants and animals) a group of related plants or animals:

An order is below a class and above a family.

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Species & genders

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order noun (ARCHITECTURE)

[ C ] architecture specialized

a style of ancient Greek or Roman architecture that uses a particular type of column:

The Ionic order is lighter and more elegant than the Doric, with slim, usually fluted shafts and spiral scrolls on the capitals.

The three main orders originating in ancient Greece are the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian, and the Romans added the Tuscan and Composite orders.

The Tuscan is the simplest of the five main orders of classical architecture.

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Architecture

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Grammar

In order to

In order to is a subordinating conjunction. …

So that or in order that?

We use so that and in order that to talk about purpose. We often use them with modal verbs (can, would, will, etc.). So that is far more common than in order that, and in order that is more formal: …

Idioms

orders are orders
out of order
the lower orders
the order of the day

order

verb

/ˈɔː.dər/ us

/ˈɔːr.dɚ/

order verb (REQUEST)

A2 [ I or T ]

to ask for something to be made, supplied, or delivered, especially in a restaurant or shop:

I ordered some pasta and a mixed salad.

[ + two objects ] There are no shirts left in this size but we could order one for you/order you one.

More examplesFewer examples

The waiter smiled contemptuously at anyone who didn't know which wine to order.
I ordered a double espresso.
She quickly emptied her glass and ordered another drink.
He orders the same thing every time he goes to this restaurant.
I'll be ordering a take-away later. Would you like anything?

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Buying

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order verb (INSTRUCT)

B2 [ T ]

If a person in authority orders someone to do something, or orders something to be done, they tell someone to do it:

The management has ordered a cutback in spending.

[ + speech ] "Wait over there," she ordered.

[ + to infinitive ] They ordered him to leave the room.

More examplesFewer examples

I order you to put down your weapon.
The police have been ordered to pay substantial damages to the families of the two dead boys.
An inquiry was ordered into the recent rail disaster.
In a level voice, he ordered the soldiers to aim and fire.
You can't just come in here and start ordering people around.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Giving orders & commands

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order verb (ARRANGE)

[ T ]

to arrange a group of people or things in a list from first to last:

The documents have been ordered alphabetically.

order something into something I've ordered the application forms into three groups.

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

to arrange papers, furniture, etc.

arrangeThe books are arranged in alphabetical order.
orderThe names are ordered alphabetically.
sortTen million pieces of mail are sorted every day.
organizeHe liked to organize his herbs and spices alphabetically in the cabinet.
lay outHe laid the playing cards out in a precise circle.
set outShe was setting out the usual platter of cheese sandwiches.

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SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Classifying and creating order

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Idiom

order your thoughts

Phrasal verbs

order someone around

order something in

(Definition of order from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

order | American Dictionary

order

noun

/ˈɔr·dər/

order noun (INSTRUCTION)

Add to word list Add to word list

[ C ]

something you are told to do by someone else and which you must do:

[ + to infinitive ] The company has received an order to stop releasing pollution into the air.

His defense was that he was only obeying orders.

order noun (ARRANGEMENT)

[ U ]

the way in which people or things are arranged in relation to one another or according to a particular characteristic:

Please arrange the books in alphabetical order by author.

I can’t find the files I need because they’re all out of order (= they are not arranged in the correct way).

[ U ]

If you leave/put things in order, you make them neat:

I want to leave my desk in order before I go on vacation.

order noun (CORRECT BEHAVIOR)

[ U ]

a situation in which rules are obeyed and people do what they are expected to do:

Observers were present to preserve order during the voting.

order noun (USABLE CONDITION)

[ U ]

the state of working correctly or of being suitable for use:

The set of power tools are all in good working order.

Are your immigration papers in order (= legally correct)?

The elevator is out of order (= not working).

order noun (SYSTEM)

[ C ]

a social or political system:

a new economic order

order noun (REQUEST)

[ C ]

An order is also the thing that has been requested:

The store phoned to say your order has come in.

on order

If something is on order, you have asked for it to be obtained but have not yet received it:

The lamp has been on order for several weeks.

Idioms

in order
in order for something to happen
in order to do something

order

verb

/ˈɔr·dər/

order verb (REQUEST)

[ I/T ]

to ask for something to be made, supplied, or delivered:

[ I ] Are you ready to order, or do you need a little more time?

[ T ] I ordered some pasta and a mixed salad.

[ T ] After looking through the catalog, she called the store and ordered new sheets and towels.

order verb (INSTRUCT)

[ T ]

(esp. of a person in authority) to tell someone to do something:

They ordered him to leave the room.

Phrasal verb

order around someone

(Definition of order from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

order | Business English

order

noun

/ˈɔːdər/ us

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[ C ] COMMERCE

a request from a customer for goods or services:

Recent trends suggest that orders are unlikely to be converted into sales until the second half.

We make a service and handling charge of $4 for all phone and internet orders of tickets.

Already, the US aeronautics company has accumulated its biggest-ever backlog of orders - valued at $475 million.

online/postal orders

We're encouraged by the rise in order intakes this past quarter.

a reduction in order volumes in the UK

place/put in an order (for sth) Placing orders by computer for medications ensures greater efficiency and a quicker delivery time to patients.

take/get/receive an order (for sth) The Project extended the period for taking orders for its €45 million IPO until Friday.

lose/win/cancel an order (for sth) Due to technical difficulties, the company recently lost an order for $175,000 worth of bakery equipment.

process/fill/make up an order (for sth) The time it takes to fill orders for cars has increased.

Once an order goes through, a message is sent to an inventory system on another computer.

orders are up/down Durable goods orders were up in October by 2.9 %.

orders fall/increase/rise In the past twelve months, we have seen export orders rise by 26%.

[ C ] COMMERCE

the goods that a customer has ordered from a company, store, or manufacturer:

Call centres were flooded with complaints from people who had experienced problems with their orders.

deliver/send/supply an order We will notify you by email once your order has been sent.

receive/get/take delivery of an order The "Super Express" option enables customers to receive orders on the next working day.

handle/trace/monitor an order By going online, our customers can easily trace the status of their order.

In spite of the rail strike, only a handful of orders were delayed.

[ C ] LAW

a statement made by a court of law or an official authority saying that something must be done:

issue/back/block an order The company was forced to stop selling insurance in May after the order which was issued by Florida's Insurance Department.

an order expires/is extended The order was scheduled to expire today but was extended at the request of US prosecutors.

an order to do sth Authorities need an order from the courts to require libraries to provide records on the borrowing of books and on the use of internet sites.

[ S or U ] ACCOUNTING, FINANCE

the way in which data or information is arranged:

in alphabetical/numerical/date order Names of recent clients are listed in alphabetical order.

the order of priority/preference There are laws that control the order of priority for payments to creditors.

[ S or U ] ECONOMICS, GOVERNMENT

a situation in which laws or rules relating to a particular activity exist:

The federal government needs to bring order to the complicated system of trading.

a new world/global/economic order

be in order

to be necessary :

Recent events have shown that a review of existing laws is in order.

to be legally or officially acceptable:

Check that all your documentation is in order before travelling abroad.

build/make sth to order

COMMERCE, PRODUCTION

to make something for a specific customer, rather than making something in large numbers:

All our furniture is made to order.

by order of

LAW

according to the orders of a judge or someone in a position of authority:

After a press scandal concerning the company's CEO, the deal was canceled by order of the state attorney general.

in ascending/descending order

data or information that is arranged in ascending order is arranged so that the smallest or least important numbers, facts, etc. are shown first; data or information that is arranged in descending order is arranged so that the largest or most important numbers, facts, etc. are shown first:

Click once and the list is sorted in ascending order; click again and it's sorted in descending order.

in good/working, etc. order

in good condition, or in good enough condition to be used:

Business owners are being urged to check that their CCTV cameras are in working order.

in the order of sth (US also on the order of sth)

having the approximate value stated:

The German group is capable of financing a deal in the order of €100bn.

The latest estimates of the state's unfunded pension liability are on the order of $10 billion.

keep/put sth in order

to make sure that something is done in a controlled way, or to take action in order to control something :

Huge budget cuts are inevitable in order to put public finances back in order.

on order

COMMERCE

something that is on order has been asked for by a customer but has not yet been received by them:

The shipping company is the largest buyer of the new trucks, with 55 currently on order.

order of business

MEETINGS

the order in which different subjects are discussed at a business meeting:

Has anyone any changes to suggest to the order of business?

Our first order of business is how to tackle the current debt crisis.

Compare

agenda

out of order

not acceptable according to a law or rule, or according to what people think is correct or suitable:

Her comments were ruled out of order by the chairperson.

The Press Complaints Commission acknowledged that newspaper coverage of the event had been completely out of order.

a machine that is out of order is not working correctly:

All our elevators are currently out of order.

documents, files, etc. that are out of order are not arranged in the correct way:

The pages I printed out were all out of order.

under orders to do sth

a person or organization that is under orders to do something has been told officially to do something:

Commercial banks are under orders not to begin selling the new coins to customers until Thursday.

See also

administration order
advance order
back order
banker's order
bank order
bankruptcy order
built-to-order
buying order
buy limit order
buy order
compulsory purchase order
copy order
court order
day order
delivery order
discretionary order
executive order
fill or kill order
gag order
good-till-cancelled order
international money order
job order
judge's order
limit order
made-to-order
make-to-order
mail order
mandatory order
market order
money order
part shipment
pecking order
point of order
postal order
purchase order
receiving order
repeat order
rush order
selling order
sell limit order
sell order
standing order
stop order

order

verb

/ˈɔːdər/ us

[ I or T ] COMMERCE

to ask a company, store, manufacturer, etc. to supply goods or services:

Our new service enables you to order foreign currency online.

To order your copy, visit our website or call this number.

order sth online/on the internet More and more people are ordering books and DVDs online.

[ T ] WORKPLACE, GOVERNMENT, LAW

to tell someone to do something, especially when you are in a position of legal or official authority:

order sb/sth to do sth State agencies were ordered to cut all nonessential energy use.

Banks have been ordered by the Financial Services Authority to assess how they would cope in the event of house prices crashing by 40 %.

order a trial/investigation/inquiry Local governments have ordered an inquiry into radiation levels in the affected areas.

order that Alaska's attorney-general has ordered that the company retain all documents relating to financial transactions in the current fiscal year.

[ T ]

to organize information or data using a particular method:

He counted and ordered the copies.

order sth alphabetically/numerically/by date Order the documents in the file by date.

Phrasal verbs

order sb around

order sth up

Collocations with order

order

These are words often used in combination with order.

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

demolition order

He wrote to me because the local authority had made a demolition order, and that demolition order expired about a week ago yesterday.

From the

Hansard archive

Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0

eviction order

The next step they are taking against me is a bailiff's eviction order.

From the

Hansard archive

Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0

extradition order

However, the extradition proceedings were recommenced following the receipt of further evidence, resulting in the extradition order being issued.

From the

Hansard archive

Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0

These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

See all collocations with order

What is the pronunciation of order?