department

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A section of a company, school, hospital or other organization that handles one particular area of work.

   Grammar: Countable: the marketing department, two departments. A department can take a singular or plural verb in British English.

   Patterns

   • the department of something
   • work in a department
   • head of the department

   She works in the accounting department of a large firm.

   The English department is hiring two new teachers.

   Please send your complaint to the customer service department.

2. 2nouncountable

   One of the main branches of a national or regional government, led by a minister or secretary.

   Grammar: Often capitalized in titles: the Department of Transport. Used with the.

   Patterns

   • the Department of something
   • a government department

   The Department of Education published the new guidelines on Monday.

   A spokesperson for the health department refused to comment.

   He spent ten years working for a government department.

3. 3nouncountable

   A section of a large shop where one kind of goods is sold.

   Grammar: Countable and usually named by the goods: the toy department.

   Patterns

   • the something department
   • in the something department

   You will find the lamps in the home department on the third floor.

   She bought a scarf in the accessories department.

   Let's meet in the shoe department.

4. 4nounsingularinformalfigurative

   A particular area of activity or skill that someone is responsible for or good or bad at.

   Grammar: Informal and usually used as 'in the ___ department' or 'that's not my department'.

   Patterns

   • in the something department
   • not my department

   He is fine at math, but cooking is not his department.

   We are short of money, but we are doing well in the ideas department.

   Don't ask me about the wiring; that's my brother's department.

Word forms

Common combinations

head of the department

She was appointed head of the physics department last year.

human resources department

Contact the human resources department about your holiday request.

fire department

The fire department arrived within five minutes.

department store

We bought the gift at a department store downtown.

transfer to a different department

After two years in sales, he transferred to a different department.

police department

The city police department has opened an investigation.

Synonyms and how they differ

division

Division is a more general term for a large part of an organization and often suggests a bigger unit than a department.

section

Section is looser and can be any part, whereas department suggests a formally named unit with its own staff.

branch

Branch usually means a local office or outlet of an organization, not a functional unit within one building.

ministry

Ministry is used for a government department in many countries, especially outside the United States.

Word family

departmental adjective

relating to a department

interdepartmental adjective

involving two or more departments

departmentalize verb

to divide into departments

departmentalization noun

the process of dividing something into departments

Commonly confused: department or departure?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “department”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words