Arrangements

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /əˈɹeɪnd͡ʒmənts/

Definitions

1. Preparations made in advance for a particular purpose or event ; a musical composition adapted or arranged for performance by a specific set of instruments or voices
2. Organized plans or agreements to coordinate actions or events ; the adaptation of a piece of music for different instruments, voices, or styles
3. The act of making plans or organizing details for something to happen ; a musical work changed to suit the performance of various musicians or arrangements

Etymology: The noun "arrangements" is simply the plural of "arrangement," and the singular takes its meaning from a chain of French and Latin borrowings. The core is the verb "arrange," which entered English from Old French "arangier," itself built from "a-" (meaning "to") and "rengier," meaning "to put in a row." That word traces back to a Vulgar Latin "rencus," an ordered line, which came from Frankish "rank" and ultimately Proto-Germanic "rankaz," meaning something bent or curved. The idea of a row or rank, then, sits at the root of today's sense of things put in order. The "-ment" ending is a Latin suffix, "-mentum," that forms nouns from verbs and denotes a result or means. It passed through Old French "-ment" into English, where it attaches to many verbs, so "arrange" plus "-ment" gives "arrangement," a thing that has been arranged. English took the noun from French, and the plural form now covers both organized plans and the musical adaptations of a piece.

Synonyms: plans, preparations, setups