Order Means Sequence, Command, Calm and a Religious Community
Order is arrangement, a command, or an organised body. One word covers a remarkable spread of related ideas.
Order is a sequence, an instruction, a state of calm, or an organised body of people. Latin *ordo* originally meant a row of threads in a loom, and every English sense follows from arranging things in rows: putting things in order, giving orders so things happen in order, keeping public order, and a religious order of people living under one rule. In biology, order is a rank between class and family.
- A sequence. *In alphabetical order.*
- A command. *Follow orders.*
- Calm. *Law and order.*
- A religious community. *A monastic order.*
- A request for goods. *Place an order.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | order | In order. |
| Plural | orders | Standing orders. |
| Verb | order | Order it. |
| Adjective | orderly | An orderly queue. |
| Latin | ordo | A row, a rank. |
- Sort them into order.Sequence.
- The order was founded in 1098.Religious.
- Ordo meant a row of threads.Etymology.
The ordo family
- Ordinary — belonging to the regular order of things
- Ordain — to set in order, or to appoint to holy orders
- Coordinate — to order together
- Subordinate — placed in a lower rank
- Ordinal — a number showing position in a sequence
Latin *ordo*, a row, rank or series, originally a row of threads in a loom, through Old French *ordre*.
Why does order mean both sequence and command?
Because giving an order arranges what happens and in what sequence. Both descend from the idea of putting things in rows.
What is an order in biology?
A rank of classification between class and family, such as Carnivora or Primates.