o ‧ ri ‧ en ‧ ta ‧ tion AC /ˌɔːriənˈteɪʃ ə n, ˌɒri- $ ˌɔː-/ BrE AmE noun formal
[ Word Family: verb : ↑ orient ; noun : ↑ orientation ]
1 . [uncountable and countable] the type of activity or subject that a person or organization seems most interested in and gives most attention to
orientation towards/to
The company needs to develop a stronger orientation towards marketing its products.
How can we get students to adopt a serious orientation to learning?
orientation of
He was unhappy with the commercial orientation of the organization.
2 . [uncountable and countable] the political opinions or religious beliefs that someone has
political/religious orientation
The meeting is open to everyone, whatever their political or religious orientation.
The party has a broadly socialist orientation.
3 . sexual orientation the fact that someone is ↑ heterosexual or ↑ homosexual :
Discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation is still far too widespread.
4 . [uncountable] a period of time during which people are trained and prepared for a new job or course of study:
This is orientation week for all the new students.
5 . [countable] the angle or position of an object, or the direction in which it is facing