Origin: Latin suffix -tion
Compilation has 3 different meanings across 1 category:
something that is compiled (as into a single book or file)
"The teacher handed out a digital compilation of all the student essays from last semester."
the act of compiling (as into a single book or file or list)
"the job of compiling the inventory took several hours"
The act or process of compiling or gathering together from various sources.
"The music compilation features hit tracks gathered from artists across three different decades."
In plain English: A compilation is a collection of different items put together into one group.
"The music compilation features hits from the 1990s."
Usage: Use "compilation" to refer to a collected work made by gathering items from different sources, such as a song album or a list of facts. It describes the final assembled product rather than the act of putting it together.
The word compilation comes from the Latin compilatio, which originally meant "a raking together" or "plundering." It entered English through Middle French to describe the act of collecting and arranging various items into one document.