noun

facility

fuh-SIL-uh-tee

Facility (noun) means a building, room or piece of equipment set up and used for a particular activity or service. Example: “The company opened a new research facility outside Boston.”

noun

A building, room or piece of equipment set up and used for a particular activity or service.

"The company opened a new research facility outside Boston."

"All waste must be taken to an approved recycling facility."

A service, feature or amenity provided for people to use, often one of several offered together.

"The hotel has excellent facilities for families, including a pool and a crèche."

"The bank offers an overdraft facility to current account holders."

formal A natural ability to do something easily and well.

"She has a remarkable facility for languages."

"He plays with a facility that makes the hardest passages look effortless."

How to use facility

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishA place built for a particular purpose, or a service you are given the use of.

When to use it

Neutral in the 'building' sense and very common in business and government writing. The 'natural ability' sense is formal and mostly literary.

Memory tip

In the plural, facilities usually means the toilets in British public signage, so 'Where are the facilities?' is a polite way of asking for the loo.

Trace the full origin ↓

Easily confused with

faculty → utility → amenity →

Common pairings

medical facility storage facility state-of-the-art facility facilities management credit facility

Study it as flashcards or scroll it in Flow — saved to your collection.

Test yourself on “facility” A quick quiz — meaning, synonyms & usage →

Fill the gap

Can you complete this real example?

The company opened a new research _____ outside Boston.

Etymology

From Latin facilitas 'easiness', from facilis 'easy', from facere 'to do, to make'. The 'ease, skill' sense came into English first; the 'building or amenity' sense developed later.

Origin: Latin

Synonyms

View more →

installation complex premises plant centre amenity provision service convenience aptitude knack flair

Related words

power service office heart building easy middle green

Rhymes for facility

city pity deity acuity parity entity brevity opacity paucity ability quality reality

See all rhymes for facility →

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a facility and a faculty?

A facility is a place or a service, such as a training facility or sports facilities. A faculty is either a mental power, like the faculty of speech, or a department of a university and the staff who teach in it. The two are unrelated in meaning despite sounding similar.

Does facilities always mean the toilets?

No. In general use, facilities means whatever equipment, rooms or services are available, such as conference facilities or cooking facilities. It is only a polite word for toilets in certain contexts, usually spoken British English.

What does credit facility mean?

In finance, a facility is an arrangement under which a lender agrees to make money available to a borrower, such as an overdraft or a revolving credit line. The borrower can draw on it as needed rather than receiving a single lump sum.

What is the meaning of facility?

"facility" (noun) means a building, room or piece of equipment set up and used for a particular activity or service.

People also searched

power service office heart building easy middle green