distribution

noun

dis·tri·bu·tion | \ ˌdis-trə-ˈbyü-shən

Definition of distribution

1a : the act or process of distributing the distribution of leaflets profit distribution the distribution of weight

b law : the act or process of apportioning by a court the personal property of an intestate

2a : the position, arrangement, or frequency of occurrence (as of the members of a group) over an area or throughout a space or unit of time the distribution of the country's population

b biology : the natural geographic range of an organism

3a : something distributed charitable distributions : such as

(1) : a sum of money withdrawn from a fund (such as a retirement fund) and given to the beneficiary (see beneficiary sense 2b) or holder of the fund

(2) : dividend sense 1a

b mathematics

(1) : frequency distribution

(2) : probability function

(3) : probability density function sense 2

4 anatomy : the pattern of branching and termination (see termination sense 4) of a ramifying structure (such as a nerve)

5 business : the marketing or merchandising of commodities keeping track of distribution costs

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Examples of distribution in a Sentence

The group collects food and clothing for distribution to needy families. The distribution of paychecks will happen every other Friday. The university does not permit distribution of leaflets on campus. She was responsible for product distribution. The company handles the distribution of goods to stores nationwide. He complained that the distribution of work was unfair. He studies the distributions of wildcats in North America. The new design provides better weight distribution.

Recent Examples on the Web

The retailers actually are the most powerful players in the TV distribution business. — Eric Johnson, Recode, "Why Roku isn’t afraid of competition from Apple, Google and Amazon," 13 Sep. 2018 The pact follows months of speculation about Amazon’s plans to get into the pharmacy or drug-distribution business. — Robert Langreth / Bloomberg, Time, "Amazon Makes Big Foray Into Health Care With Purchase of Pharmacy Startup PillPack," 28 June 2018 The pact follows months of speculation about Amazon’s plans to get into the pharmacy or drug-distribution business. — Robert Langreth And Zachary Tracer, chicagotribune.com, "Amazon makes $1 billion splash into health care with PillPack pact," 28 June 2018 The ousters left Keith Le Goy in charge of Sony’s home entertainment and television distribution businesses. — Ryan Faughnder, latimes.com, "Sony Pictures merges TV divisions in major step to secure its digital future," 20 June 2018 The biggest of those by far is Sorkin’s food-distribution business, owed $3.2 million. — Michael Klein, Philly.com, "Chef Jose Garces faces a crucial court date," 18 May 2018 The nasal spray is only available through a restricted distribution system, under a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS), according to the FDA. — Korin Miller, SELF, "What You Need to Know About Esketamine, the First Nasal Spray Approved to Treat Depression," 7 Mar. 2019 The challenge has really been the rethinking of our operational strategy, from software to distribution, like cutting back with wholesale, to supply chain to production. — Nick Remsen, Vogue, "Overhauling Heritage (With an Edge of Clever Hype): A Conversation with Rimowa CEO Alexandre Arnault," 27 Feb. 2019 An argument over the film's (largely Netflix-based) distribution method. — Chloe Foussianes, Town & Country, "What you should know about the debate before the Academy Awards.," 22 Feb. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'distribution.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near distribution

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Last Updated

31 Mar 2019

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Time Traveler for distribution

The first known use of distribution was in the 14th century

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More Definitions for distribution

distribution

noun

English Language Learners Definition of distribution

: the act of giving or delivering something to people

: the act of delivering something to a store or business

: the way that something is divided or spread out

See the full definition for distribution in the English Language Learners Dictionary

distribution

noun

dis·tri·bu·tion | \ ˌdi-strə-ˈbyü-shən

Kids Definition of distribution

1 : the act of giving out or delivering to

2 : the way things are divided or spread out She studies the distribution of wildcats in the area.

3 : something given out or delivered to or divided among

distribution

noun

dis·tri·bu·tion | \ ˌdis-trə-ˈbyü-shən

Medical Definition of distribution

: the pattern of branching and termination of a ramifying anatomical structure (as a nerve or artery)

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distribution

noun

dis·tri·bu·tion | \ ˌdis-trə-ˈbyü-shən

Legal Definition of distribution

1 : the act or process of distributing: as

a : the apportionment by a court of the property and especially personal property of an intestate among those entitled to it according to statute — compare descent, devise

Note: The laws dealing with intestate succession are often called laws of descent and distribution.

b : the payment or transfer to a beneficiary of interest to which he or she is entitled under a trust

c : the transfer by a corporation or mutual fund of money or property to a shareholder in his or her capacity as a shareholder

d : the initial offering to the public of a security by a corporation

e : the delivery of a controlled substance

2 : something distributed