different between duty vs deputation

English

Etymology

From Middle English duete, from Middle English dewe) + Middle English -te, (borrowed from Old French -te from Latin -t?tem, accusative masculine singular of -t?s). Akin to due + -ty (Alternative form of -ity).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?dju?ti/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /du?ti/
• Rhymes: -u?ti
• Homophone: doody (for some speakers)

Noun

duty (countable and uncountable, plural duties)

1. That which one is morally or legally obligated to do.
   • 1805, 21 October, Horatio Nelson

     England expects that every man will do his duty.

   • Captain Edward Carlisle […] felt a curious sensation of helplessness seize upon him as he met her steady gaze, […]; he could not tell what this prisoner might do. He cursed the fate which had assigned such a duty, cursed especially that fate which forced a gallant soldier to meet so superb a woman as this under handicap so hard.
2. The state of being at work and responsible for or doing a particular task.

3. A tax placed on imports or exports; a tariff.

   customs duty; excise duty

4. (obsolete) One's due, something one is owed; a debt or fee.
   • 1526, William Tyndale, trans. Bible, Matthew XX:

     Take that which is thy duty, and goo thy waye.

5. (obsolete) Respect; reverence; regard; act of respect; homage.
6. The efficiency of an engine, especially a steam pumping engine, as measured by work done by a certain quantity of fuel; usually, the number of pounds of water lifted one foot by one bushel of coal (94 lbs. old standard), or by 1 cwt. (112 lbs., England, or 100 lbs., United States).

Usage notes

• Adjectives often used with "duty": public, private, moral, legal, social, double, civic, contractual, political, judicial, etc.

Synonyms

• (that which one is obligated to do): obligation

Antonyms

• duty-free (taxes)
• (that which one is obligated to do): right

Derived terms

Related terms

• due

Translations

Further reading

• duty in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• duty in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• duty at OneLook Dictionary Search

Lower Sorbian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [?dut?]

Participle

duty

1. past passive participle of du?

Declension

English

Etymology

From Middle French députation, from Late Latin deputatio.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?d?pju??te???n/
• Rhymes: -e???n

Noun

deputation (countable and uncountable, plural deputations)

1. The act of deputing, or of appointing or commissioning a deputy or representative; office of a deputy or delegate; vicegerency.

   • The authority of conscience stands founded upon its vicegerency and deputation under God.

2. The person or persons deputed or commissioned by another person, party, or public body to act in his or its behalf; a delegation.
   • 1850, George Long, France and Its Revolutions: A Pictorial History, 1789-1848 (page 29)

     A deputation came to the Hotel de Ville from the district of the Mathurins, where the people had assembled, appointed a president and other officers, and begun to make a list of the citizens who were able to bear arms.

3. Among Christian missionaries, the process or period of time during which they raise support in preparation for going to their mission field.

Usage notes

The use of the word in the missionary sense has been common in churches and mission organizations for over a century, but has recently been giving way to the more "bureaucratic" term "home ministry assignment". As commonly used, a missionary does deputation or is on deputation. However, the missionary is not called a "deputy" nor is the person said to be a part of a "deputation". Deputation begins when the missionary is officially commissioned to be a missionary, and it ends when the person goes to the mission field.

Translations

Anagrams

• outpainted, painted out

Danish

Noun

deputation c (singular definite deputationen, plural indefinite deputationer)

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

Declension

Further reading

• “deputation” in Den Danske Ordbog