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Definition of institution noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

institution

noun
 
/ˌɪnstɪˈtjuːʃn/
 
/ˌɪnstɪˈtuːʃn/
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  1. [countable] a large important organization that has a particular purpose, for example a university or bank
    • The deal is backed by one of the country's largest financial institutions.
    • He has worked as a visiting lecturer for various educational institutions.
    • The system is targeted mainly at academic and research institutions.
    • the Smithsonian Institution
    • institution of something The region boasts several institutions of higher education.
    Extra Examples
    • The College is one of the most prestigious medical institutions in the country.
    • We need to create institutions that benefit our community.
    • a course at an institution of higher education
    • cultural institutions such as the Danish Institute
    • examination procedures within educational institutions
    • young people who attend higher-education institutions
    Topics Educationb2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • central
    • large
    • major
    verb + institution
    • build
    • create
    • found
    preposition
    • at a/​the institution
    • in institution
    • within institution
    See full entry
  2. [countable] (usually disapproving) a hospital, prison or other building where people are made to stay and are cared for
    • They had him committed to an institution.
    • We want this to be like a home, not an institution.
    Extra Examples
    • In the 1960s, he ended up in a psychiatric institution.
    • Most people with dementia would rather remain at home than be placed in an institution.
    • She was released from the state institution where she had been confined for four years.
    • The state built institutions for those who were considered insane.
    • He wanted to save them from being locked away in an institution for delinquents.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • mental
    • correctional
    • penal
    verb + institution
    • build
    • be admitted to
    • be placed in
    preposition
    • at institution
    • in institution
    • institution for
    See full entry
  3. [countable] a custom or system that has existed for a long time among a particular group of people
    • He claimed this threatened ‘the sacred institution of marriage’.
    • Fish and chips became a national institution in Britain.
    Extra Examples
    • Football is a national institution in this country.
    • American laws once protected the institution of slavery.
    • These changes threaten some of our most cherished institutions.
    • These values are embedded in mainstream social institutions.
    • cultural institutions such as religious and legal codes
    • Parliament remains the central institution of the constitution of the United Kingdom.
    • They argue for the reform of existing political institutions.
    • the central institutions of the nation's constitution
    • They are studying ways to reform government institutions.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • national
    • cultural
    • economic
    verb + institution
    • threaten
    • undermine
    • weaken
    See full entry
  4. [uncountable] the act of starting or introducing something such as a system or a law
    • the institution of new safety procedures
  5. [countable] (informal, humorous) a person who is well known because they have been in a particular place or job for a long time
    • You must know him—he's an institution around here!
  6. Word Originlate Middle English (in senses (3) and (4)): via Old French from Latin institutio(n-), from the verb instituere, from in- ‘in, towards’ + statuere ‘set up’. Sense (1) dates from the early 18th cent.
See institution in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee institution in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
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