displacement

displacement — noun

1. the situation in which people are forced to leave their homes or home region, us

1.nounB2
Definition

the situation in which people are forced to leave their homes or home region, usually because of war, violence, natural disaster, or political oppression.

Example

The war caused the displacement of more than two million people across the country.

displacement of + number + people

Many farming families faced displacement when the river flooded the entire valley.

Common collocations
  • mass displacement
  • forced displacement
  • internal displacement
  • displacement crisis
Synonyms
  • expulsion

    stronger, implies being forced out by authority

  • uprooting

    more emotional; suggests loss of connection to one's home

  • exile

    specifically forced absence from one's country, often for political reasons

Antonyms
  • repatriation

    the return of people to their home country or region

Grammar Patterns

displacement + of + group

Usage Note

Often modified by a cause (war, disaster, climate change). The verb form 'displace' is transitive: 'the earthquake displaced thousands of people.'

Common Mistakes

The family experienced a displacement when they moved to a bigger house.
The family experienced displacement when the war destroyed their village.
displacement implies force or necessity, not a voluntary move.

2. the volume of a liquid or gas that is pushed aside when an object is placed in i

2.nounB2
Definition

the volume of a liquid or gas that is pushed aside when an object is placed in it; often used to measure the object's volume or a ship's weight.

Example

Archimedes realised that displacement could measure the volume of an irregular object.

Rin measured the displacement of water after dropping the metal ball into the beaker.

displacement of + liquid — core collocation

Common collocations
  • engine displacement
  • water displacement
  • fluid displacement
  • displacement value
Synonyms
  • volume

    more general; displacement specifies volume pushed aside

  • buoyant volume

    technical term for the displaced fluid volume in flotation

Grammar Patterns

displacement + of + liquid/gas

Usage Note

In engineering, 'displacement' also refers to the volume swept by a piston in an engine (engine displacement). In physics, do not confuse this sense with 'displacement' as a vector quantity meaning change in position.

Common Mistakes

The displacement of the car was 60 miles per hour.
The displacement of the engine was 2.0 litres.
displacement in mechanics is about volume, not speed or distance.

3. a psychological defense mechanism in which a person unconsciously redirects a st

3.nounC1
Definition

a psychological defense mechanism in which a person unconsciously redirects a strong emotion, such as anger or fear, from the original source to a less threatening person or object.

Example

His anger at his boss turned into displacement, so he shouted at his wife instead.

displacement as a way of redirecting anger

Therapists often help patients recognise displacement as an unconscious coping strategy.

Common collocations
  • psychological displacement
  • act of displacement
  • displacement behaviour
Synonyms
  • redirection

    more general term; lacks the clinical specificity

  • sublimation

    a related defense mechanism where emotions are redirected into socially acceptable activities

Grammar Patterns

displacement + of + emotion + onto + target

Usage Note

Distinguish from 'projection': in displacement the emotion stays the same but the target changes; in projection the person attributes their own emotion to someone else.

Common Mistakes

I used displacement to calm down by talking to a friend.
In displacement, the person may not realise they are redirecting their feelings.
displacement is usually unconscious, not a deliberate strategy.

4. the act of one thing, person, or system being moved from its usual position and

4.nounB2
Definition

the act of one thing, person, or system being moved from its usual position and replaced by another, often in a way that feels disruptive or unwanted.

Example

The displacement of older workers by younger graduates caused tension in the office.

displacement of X by Y — typical passive structure

Harper was unhappy about her displacement as team leader after the company restructuring.

Common collocations
  • displacement of workers
  • technological displacement
  • gradual displacement
  • economic displacement
Synonyms
  • supplanting

    more formal; suggests deliberate overthrow

  • ousting

    informal; implies forceful removal, especially from a position

  • replacement

    neutral; does not carry the negative connotation of displacement

Antonyms
  • retention

    keeping something or someone in its original position

Grammar Patterns

displacement + of + noun + by + noun

Usage Note

Often carries a negative tone, suggesting the original occupant did not deserve to be removed. Compare 'substitution,' which is more neutral and often technical.

Common Mistakes

The displacement of the old chair with a new one was quick.
The removal of the old chair and the replacement with a new one was quick.
'displacement' usually implies an undesired or disruptive change, not a routine swap.

Word family

  • displace
    verbB2
  • displaced
    adjectiveB2
  • displaceable
    adjectiveC2
  • displacer
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four terms involve people moving from one place to another, but the cause and agency differ. 'Displacement' is the strongest — it implies force or necessity, with no choice involved (war, disaster, persecution). 'Relocation' is neutral or even positive, often organised by an employer or government; it suggests planning rather than crisis. 'Evacuation' is temporary and protective, typically ordered by authorities during an emergency (a hurricane or fire), with the expectation of return. 'Migration' is voluntary or seasonal movement, often across borders for work or better living conditions. For example: a family displaced by war cannot go home; a family relocated by a company moves with a job offer; residents evacuated during a flood expect to return; economic migrants cross borders by choice.

displacement ↗relocationevacuationmigration ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • population displacement
  • engine displacement
  • fluid displacement
  • displacement crisis
  • displacement camp

Adverbs

  • forcibly displaced
  • internally displaced
  • gradually displaced

Phrases

  • suffer displacement
  • cause displacement
  • lead to displacement
  • experience displacement

Prepositions

  • displacement of
  • displacement by
  • displacement from
  • displacement due to

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchEnglish

The word 'displacement' was formed in English in the 1600s by adding the suffix '-ment' to the verb 'displace.' The verb 'displace' came from Old French 'desplacer' (des- meaning 'away from' + placer meaning 'to place'), which traces back to Latin 'dis-' (apart) and 'placere' (to please, to be acceptable — though the sense of 'place' comes from a different Latin root, 'platea' meaning 'open space'). Originally it meant simply 'to move from its place,' and by the 1800s it had developed the specialised physics sense (fluid displacement) and later the psychological sense.