Standard Lemma guide

institution

noun · 16 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˌɪn.stɪˈtʃuː.ʃən/ yod-coalescence
  • /ˌɪn.stɪˈtjuː.ʃən/ non-yod-coalescence
  • Canada, General-American: /ˌɪn.stɪˈtu.ʃən/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Australian: /ˌɪn.stɪˈtjʉː.ʃən/
  • rhymes with -uːʃən
  • CMU ARPABET: IH2 N S T IH0 T UW1 SH AH0 N Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A long-established organization or type of organization, particularly one involved with education, public service, or charity work.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • The University of the South Pacific is the only internationally accredited institution of higher education in Oceania.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A custom or practice of a society or community.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • The institution of marriage is present in many cultures but its details vary widely across them.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The building or buildings which house such an organization.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • He's been in an institution since the crash.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A mental institution.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, informal, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

Any facility where people (especially those who are mentally or physically disabled or sick, or who are prisoners) are committed (confined), where their freedom to leave is restricted.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

Any long established and respected place or business.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, informal, uncountable

Examples

  • Over time, the local pub has become something of an institution.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

A person long established in a place, position, or field.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, informal, uncountable

Examples

  • She's not just any old scholar; she is an institution.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

The act of instituting something.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • The institution of higher speed limits was a popular move but increased the severity of crashes.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

9

noun

Meaning 9

The act by which a bishop commits a cure of souls to a priest.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: Christianity

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

10

noun

Meaning 10

That which institutes or instructs, particularly a textbook or system of elements or rules.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, obsolete, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

11

noun

Meaning 11

A correctional institution.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, informal, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

12

noun

Meaning 12

the act of starting something for the first time; introducing something new

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • she looked forward to her initiation as an adult
  • the foundation of a new scientific society

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: initiation, founding, foundation, origination, creation, innovation, introduction, instauration

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: beginning, start, commencement

Narrower terms: authorship, paternity

13

noun

Meaning 13

an establishment consisting of a building or complex of buildings where an organization for the promotion of some cause is situated

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: establishment

Narrower terms: home, nursing home, rest home, orphanage, orphans' asylum, penal institution, penal facility

14

noun

Meaning 14

a hospital for mentally incompetent or unbalanced person

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: mental hospital, psychiatric hospital, mental institution, mental home, insane asylum, asylum

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: hospital, infirmary

Narrower terms: Bedlam, booby hatch, crazy house, cuckoo's nest, funny farm, funny house, loony bin, madhouse, nut house, nuthouse, sanatorium, snake pit

15

noun

Meaning 15

a custom that for a long time has been an important feature of some group or society

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • the institution of marriage
  • the institution of slavery
  • he had become an institution in the theater

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: custom, tradition

Narrower terms: levirate

16

noun

Meaning 16

an organization founded and united for a specific purpose

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: establishment

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: organization, organisation

Narrower terms: medical institution, financial institution, financial organization, financial organisation, issuer, charity, company, religion, faith, organized religion, vicariate, vicarship, educational institution, academy, honorary society

History

Etymology

From Middle English institucioun, from Old French institution, from Latin institūtiō, from instituō (“to set up”), from in- (“in, on”) + statuō (“to set up, establish”). Equivalent to institute + -ion.

Across languages

Translations

122 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: institucion — established organisation
  • Arabic: مُؤَسَّسَة (muʔassasa) — established organisation
  • Armenian: հաստատություն (hastatutʻyun) — established organisation
  • Armenian: հիմնում (himnum) — established organisation
  • Armenian: ինստիտուտ (institut) — established organisation
  • Azerbaijani: müəssisə — established organisation
  • Azerbaijani: quruluş — established organisation
  • Belarusian: устано́ва (ustanóva) — established organisation
  • Belarusian: арганіза́цыя (arhanizácyja) — established organisation
  • Belarusian: iнстыту́цыя (instytúcyja) — established organisation
  • Bulgarian: учрежде́ние (učreždénie) — established organisation
  • Bulgarian: институ́ция (institúcija) — established organisation
  • Bulgarian: организа́ция (organizácija) — established organisation
  • Catalan: institució — established organisation
  • Chinese Mandarin: 機關 /机关 (jīguān) — established organisation
  • Chinese Mandarin: 機構 /机构 (jīgòu) — established organisation
  • Czech: instituce — established organisation
  • Danish: institution — established organisation
  • Dutch: instelling — established organisation
  • Esperanto: institucio — established organisation
  • Finnish: instituutio — established organisation
  • Finnish: laitos — established organisation
  • Finnish: toimielin — established organisation
  • French: institution — established organisation
  • Galician: institución — established organisation
  • German: Institution — established organisation
  • Greek: ίδρυμα (ídryma) — established organisation
  • Hindi: संस्था (sansthā) — established organisation
  • Hindi: प्रतिष्ठान (pratiṣṭhān) — established organisation
  • Hindi: संस्थान (sansthān) — established organisation
  • Hungarian: intézmény — established organisation
  • Icelandic: stofnun — established organisation
  • Indonesian: institusi — established organisation
  • Italian: istituzione — established organisation
  • Japanese: 機構 (kikō) — established organisation
  • Japanese: 機関 (kikan) — established organisation
  • Kazakh: ведомство (vedomstvo) — established organisation
  • Kazakh: идара (idara) — established organisation
  • Korean: 기관 (gigwan) — established organisation
  • Central Kurdish: دەزگا (dezga) — established organisation
  • Lao: ສະຖາບັນ (sa thā ban) — established organisation
  • Latvian: iestāde — established organisation
  • Macedonian: институција (institucija) — established organisation
  • Macedonian: установа (ustanova) — established organisation
  • Malayalam: സ്ഥാപനം (sthāpanaṁ) — established organisation
  • Māori: whareako — established organisation
  • Norwegian Bokmål: institusjon — established organisation
  • Iranian Persian: سازْمان (sâzmân) — established organisation
  • Iranian Persian: مُؤَسِّسِه (mo'assese) — established organisation
  • Iranian Persian: اِدارِه (edâre) — established organisation
  • Polish: instytucja — established organisation
  • Portuguese: instituição — established organisation
  • Romanian: instituție — established organisation
  • Russian: учрежде́ние (učreždénije) — established organisation
  • Russian: заведе́ние (zavedénije) — established organisation
  • Russian: организа́ция (organizácija) — established organisation
  • Russian: ве́домство (védomstvo) — established organisation
  • Russian: институ́ция (institúcija) — established organisation
  • Scottish Gaelic: stèidheachadh — established organisation
  • Serbo-Croatian: институ́ција — established organisation
  • Serbo-Croatian: institúcija — established organisation
  • Sikkimese: ཉམ་ཞིབ་ཁང (nyam zhib khang) — established organisation
  • Slovak: inštitúcia — established organisation
  • Slovene: institucija — established organisation
  • Spanish: institución — established organisation
  • Swahili: taasisi — established organisation
  • Swahili: chuo — established organisation
  • Swedish: institut — established organisation
  • Tagalog: tatagin — established organisation
  • Tajik: муассиса (muassisa) — established organisation
  • Tajik: идора (idora) — established organisation
  • Tajik: ташкилот (taškilot) — established organisation
  • Thai: สถาบัน (sà-tǎa-ban) — established organisation
  • Turkish: müessese — established organisation
  • Turkish: kuruluş — established organisation
  • Turkish: kurum — established organisation
  • Ottoman Turkish: قوروم (kurum) — established organisation
  • Ukrainian: устано́ва (ustanóva) — established organisation
  • Ukrainian: за́клад (základ) — established organisation
  • Ukrainian: організа́ція (orhanizácija) — established organisation
  • Ukrainian: інститу́ція (instytúcija) — established organisation
  • Urdu: اِدارَہ (idāra) — established organisation
  • Uzbek: muassasa — established organisation
  • Uzbek: idora — established organisation
  • Uzbek: tashkilot — established organisation
  • Vietnamese: cơ quan — established organisation
  • Vietnamese: thiết chế — established organisation
  • Azerbaijani: təsisat — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Belarusian: інстыту́т (instytút) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Belarusian: інстыту́цыя (instytúcyja) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Bulgarian: пра́ктика (práktika) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Bulgarian: институ́ция (institúcija) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Chinese Mandarin: 制度 (zhìdù) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Czech: instituce — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Danish: institution — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Finnish: instituutio — custom or practice of a society or community
  • German: Institution — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Greek: θεσμός (thesmós) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Hindi: रीति (rīti) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Hindi: प्रथा (prathā) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Hungarian: intézmény — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Indonesian: institusi — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Indonesian: pranata — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Japanese: 制度 (seido) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Kazakh: жүйе (jüie) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Korean: 제도 (jedo) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Macedonian: установа (ustanova) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Iranian Persian: رَسْم (rasm) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Polish: instytucja — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Russian: институ́т (institút) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Russian: институ́ция (institúcija) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Tagalog: gawiin — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Ottoman Turkish: قوروم (kurum) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Ukrainian: інститу́т (instytút) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Ukrainian: інститу́ція (instytúcija) — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Vietnamese: thể chế — custom or practice of a society or community
  • Bulgarian: институ́ция (institúcija) — person long established with a certain place or position
  • Finnish: instituutio — person long established with a certain place or position
  • German: Institution — person long established with a certain place or position
  • Greek: μορφή (morfí) — person long established with a certain place or position
  • Greek: προσωπικότητα (prosopikótita) — person long established with a certain place or position
  • Polish: instytucja — person long established with a certain place or position
Real reading context

institution in complete knowledge articles