registration
noun
Registration — the formal act of enrolling oneself or something into a record
Definition
The act of enrolling
In depth
Registration is the act of enrolling, the formal process by which a person, vehicle, event, or item is officially recorded within a system, granting it recognized status, legal standing, or eligibility to participate. The word implies bureaucratic procedure, the necessary first step before something can be formally acknowledged or permitted.
Origin
The word descends from Latin registrum, a list or record, related to regerere, to carry back or record. Its enduring bureaucratic precision reflects how deeply formal record-keeping has shaped modern institutional life, from voting to vehicle ownership to professional licensing, each requiring its own particular act of registration.
Usage examples
"Voter registration deadlines varied widely from one state to the next."
"Registration for the conference closed weeks before the actual event, much to the frustration of latecomers."
"She kept the car's registration in the glove compartment, exactly where her father had always insisted it belonged."
How to use it
Registration is plain, functional vocabulary common across legal, educational, and administrative writing, used wherever a formal process of official enrollment or recording is required before further action or participation becomes possible.
Related concepts
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