Origin: Latin suffix -ment
Appointment has 7 different meanings across 1 category:
the act of putting a person into a non-elective position
"the appointment had to be approved by the whole committee"
a meeting arranged in advance
"she asked how to avoid kissing at the end of a date"
(usually in the plural) furnishings and equipment (especially for a ship or hotel)
"The captain inspected all the appointments before setting sail, ensuring every piece of furniture and specialized tool was secure."
a person who is appointed to a job or position
"The new committee member was unanimously selected as our next appointment to lead the project."
the job to which you are (or hope to be) appointed
"he applied for an appointment in the treasury"
(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"
The act of appointing a person to hold an office or to have a position of trust
"The board's unanimous appointment of her as CEO marked a significant shift in the company's leadership."
In plain English: An appointment is when you agree to meet someone at a specific time and place.
"She moved her appointment with the dentist to tomorrow morning."
Usage: In everyday conversation, an appointment refers to a prearranged meeting between two or more people, not the formal act of assigning someone to a job. Use this word when scheduling time to discuss matters with a doctor, lawyer, or friend.
The word appointment comes from the Old French term appointement, which combined the verb for "to fix" or "settle" with a suffix meaning "action." It entered Middle English as appoyntement before evolving into its modern form to describe a scheduled meeting.