order

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   The way things are arranged in relation to one another.

   Please put the names in alphabetical order.

2. 2
   noun

   A request for food, drinks, or goods to be supplied.

   I gave the waiter my order.

3. 3
   noun

   An instruction that must be obeyed, given by someone in authority.

   The soldiers waited for orders from their commander.

4. 4
   noun

   A state in which rules are followed and there is no confusion or trouble.

   The teacher worked hard to keep order in the classroom.

5. 5
   noun

   A legally binding command or decision made by a court.

   The judge issued an order banning him from the building.

Common collocations

• order a drink Verb + noun
• order food Verb + noun
• follow orders Verb + noun
• order a coffee Verb + noun
• order beer Verb + noun
• take an order Verb + noun
• alphabetical order Adjective + noun
• cancel an order Verb + noun
• place an order Verb + noun
• standing order Adjective + noun

From Middle English ordre, from Old French ordre, ordne, ordene (“order, rank”), from Latin ōrdinem, accusative of ōrdō (“row, rank, regular arrangement”, literally “row of threads in a loom”), from Proto-Italic *ordō (“to arrange”), probably ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂or-d-, from *h₂er-. Related to Latin ōrdior (“begin”, literally “begin to weave”). In sense “request for purchase”, compare bespoke. Doublet of ordo. Compare typologically Russian поря́док (porjádok) (akin to ряд (rjad)).

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