Location vs. Place — What's the Difference?
By Tayyaba Rehman — Updated on October 12, 2023
Location refers to a specific point or position, while Place encompasses an area's physical and human characteristics.
Difference Between Location and Place
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
Location typically signifies a specific point on Earth's surface, pinpointed by coordinates or other geographical means. Place, on the other hand, involves a deeper understanding, encompassing both the physical and human attributes of an area.
Location can be described as objective and absolute, often involving latitudes, longitudes, or addresses. In contrast, a Place carries subjective and personal meanings, shaped by experiences, memories, and human interactions.
When one talks about Location, they are often referring to where something is, its position or address. When referring to Place, it's about the characteristics that make that location unique, be it culture, history, or personal memories associated with it.
A Location can be universally known, like the coordinates of a city on a map. A Place, however, can be uniquely meaningful to an individual, like their childhood home or a favorite vacation spot.
For instance, the Location of New York City can be identified by its geographical coordinates. But to describe New York as a Place, one might discuss its vibrant culture, history, architecture, and the feelings it evokes in its visitors and residents.
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Comparison Chart
Definition
A specific point or position on Earth.
An area defined by its physical and human attributes.
Nature
Objective and absolute.
Subjective and personal.
Emphasis
Where something is.
What it's like there.
Example
Coordinates, addresses.
Cultural significance, personal memories.
Associated with
Geographical data, maps.
Human experiences, feelings, history.
Compare with Definitions
Location
A place or position occupied.
They moved their business to a prime location downtown.
Place
An area or locality with definable characteristics.
This place is known for its rich history and architecture.
Location
A setting or backdrop, especially in films or photography.
The director chose a beach as the location for the final scene.
Place
A suitable area, setting, or occasion.
This isn't the place to discuss personal matters.
Location
The act of locating or the state of being located.
The location of the lost hiker took three days.
Place
Position in a hierarchy or sequence.
He came in first place in the race.
Location
In geography, location or place are used to denote a region (point, line, or area) on Earth’s surface or elsewhere. The term location generally implies a higher degree of certainty than place, the latter often indicating an entity with an ambiguous boundary, relying more on human or social attributes of place identity and sense of place than on geometry.
Place
A particular position, point, or area in space; a location
The monastery was a peaceful place
He would always have a special place in her heart
I can't be in two places at once
That street was no place for a lady
Location
A particular place or position
The property is set in a convenient location
Place
A portion of space designated or available for or being used by someone
Jackie had saved her a place
They hurried to their places at the table
Location
An area where black South Africans were obliged by apartheid laws to live, usually on the outskirts of a town or city. The term was later replaced by township.
Place
A position in a sequence or series, typically one ordered on the basis of merit
His score left him in ninth place
Location
The act or process of locating
Location of the lost hikers took two days.
Place
A square or short street
The lecture theatre is in New Burlington Place
Location
A place where something is or could be located; a site.
Place
Put in a particular position
A newspaper had been placed beside my plate
Location
A site away from a studio at which part or all of a movie is shot
Filming a Western on location in the Mexican desert.
Place
Find a home or employment for
The children were placed with foster-parents
Location
A tract of land that has been surveyed and marked off.
Place
Identify or classify as being of a specified type or as holding a specified position in a sequence or hierarchy
A survey placed the company 13th for achievement
Location
A particular point or place in physical space.
Place
Score (a goal) by a place kick.
Location
An act of locating.
Place
An area with definite or indefinite boundaries; a portion of space.
Location
(South Africa) An apartheid-era urban area populated by non-white people; township.
Place
Room or space, especially adequate space
There is place for everyone at the back of the room.
Location
(legal) A leasing on rent.
Place
The particular portion of space occupied by or allocated to a person or thing.
Location
A contract for the use of a thing, or service of a person, for hire.
Place
A building or an area set aside for a specified purpose
A place of worship.
Location
The marking out of the boundaries, or identifying the place or site of, a piece of land, according to the description given in an entry, plan, map, etc
Place
A dwelling; a house
Bought a place on the lake.
Location
(Kenya) An administrative region in Kenya, below counties and subcounties, and further divided into sublocations.
Place
A business establishment or office.
Location
The act or process of locating.
Place
A locality, such as a town or city
Visited many places.
Location
Situation; place; locality.
Place
Abbr. Pl. A public square or street with houses in a town.
Location
That which is located; a tract of land designated in place.
Place
A space in which one person, such as a passenger or spectator, can sit or stand.
Location
A leasing on rent.
Place
A setting for one person at a table.
Location
A point or extent in space
Place
A position regarded as belonging to someone or something else; stead
She was chosen in his place.
Location
The act of putting something in a certain place or location
Place
A particular point that one has reached, as in a book
I have lost my place.
Location
A determination of the location of something;
He got a good fix on the target
Place
A particular spot, as on the body
The place that hurts.
Location
A specific geographical point.
The location of the treasure was marked with an X.
Place
The proper or designated role or function
The place of the media in a free society.
Location
A place of activity or the scene of an event.
The concert's location was switched due to rain.
Place
The proper or customary position or order
These books are out of place.
Place
A suitable setting or occasion
Not the place to argue.
Place
The appropriate right or duty
Not her place to criticize.
Place
Social station
He overstepped his place.
Place
A particular situation or circumstance
Put yourself in my place.
Place
High rank or status.
Place
A job, post, or position
Found a place in the company.
Place
Relative position in a series; standing.
Place
(Games) Second position for betting purposes, as in a horserace.
Place
The specified stage in a list of points to be made, as in an argument
In the first place.
Place
(Mathematics) A position in a numeral or series.
Place
To put in or as if in a particular place or position; set.
Place
To put in a specified relation or order
Place the words in alphabetical order.
Place
To offer for consideration
Placed the matter before the board.
Place
To find accommodation or employment for.
Place
To put into a particular condition
Placed him under arrest.
Place
To arrange for the publication or display of
Place an advertisement in the newspaper.
Place
To appoint to a post
Placed her in a key position.
Place
To rank in an order or sequence
I'd place him second best.
Place
To estimate
Placed the distance at 100 feet.
Place
To identify or classify in a particular context
Could not place that person's face.
Place
To give an order for
Place a bet.
Place
To apply or arrange for
Place an order.
Place
To make or obtain a connection for (a telephone call).
Place
To sell (a new issue of stock, bonds, or other securities).
Place
To adjust (one's voice) for the best possible effects.
Place
To be among those who finish a competition or race, especially to finish second.
Place
(physical) An area; somewhere within an area.
Place
An open space, particularly a city square, market square, or courtyard.
Place
A street, sometimes but not always surrounding a public place, square, or plaza of the same name.
They live at Westminster Place.
Place
An inhabited area: a village, town, or city.
Place
Any area of the earth: a region.
He is going back to his native place on vacation.
Place
The area one occupies, particularly somewhere to sit.
We asked the restaurant to give us a table with three places.
Place
The area where one lives: one's home, formerly country estates and farms.
Do you want to come over to my place later?
Place
An area of the body, especially the skin.
Which place hurts the most?
Place
An area to urinate and defecate: an outhouse or lavatory.
Place
An area to fight: a battlefield or the contested ground in a battle.
Place
A location or position in space.
Place
A particular location in a book or document, particularly the current location of a reader.
Place
A passage or extract from a book or document.
Place
A topic.
Place
A state of mind.
I'm in a strange place at the moment.
Place
A chess position; a square of the chessboard.
Place
(social) A responsibility or position in an organization.
Place
A role or purpose; a station.
It is really not my place to say what is right and wrong in this case.
Place
The position of a contestant in a competition.
We thought we would win but only ended up in fourth place.
Place
(horse-racing) The position of first, second, or third at the finish, especially the second position.
To win a bet on a horse for place
Place
The position as a member of a sports team.
He lost his place in the national team.
Place
A fortified position: a fortress, citadel, or walled town.
Place
Numerically, the column counting a certain quantity.
Three decimal places;
The hundreds place
Place
Ordinal relation; position in the order of proceeding.
That's what I said in the first place!
Place
Reception; effect; implying the making room for.
Place
(transitive) To put (an object or person) in a specific location.
He placed the glass on the table.
Place
(intransitive) To earn a given spot in a competition.
The Cowboys placed third in the league.
Place
To finish second, especially of horses or dogs.
In the third race: Aces Up won, paying eight dollars; Blarney Stone placed, paying three dollars; and Cinnamon showed, paying five dollars.
Place
To rank at (a certain position, often followed by an ordinal) as in a horse race.
Run Ragged was placed fourth in the race.
Place
(transitive) To remember where and when (an object or person) has been previously encountered.
I've seen him before, but I can't quite place where.
Place
(transitive) To sing (a note) with the correct pitch.
Place
(transitive) To arrange for or to make (a bet).
I placed ten dollars on the Lakers beating the Bulls.
Place
(transitive) To establish a call connection by telephone or similar.
Place
(transitive) To recruit or match an appropriate person for a job, or a home for an animal for adoption, etc.
They phoned hoping to place her in the management team.
Place
To place-kick (a goal).
Place
Any portion of space regarded as measured off or distinct from all other space, or appropriated to some definite object or use; position; ground; site; spot; rarely, unbounded space.
Here is the place appointed.
What place can be for usWithin heaven's bound?
The word place has sometimes a more confused sense, and stands for that space which any body takes up; and so the universe is a place.
Place
A broad way in a city; an open space; an area; a court or short part of a street open only at one end.
Place
A position which is occupied and held; a dwelling; a mansion; a village, town, or city; a fortified town or post; a stronghold; a region or country.
Are you native of this place?
Place
Rank; degree; grade; order of priority, advancement, dignity, or importance; especially, social rank or position; condition; also, official station; occupation; calling.
Men in great place are thrice servants.
I know my place as I would they should do theirs.
Place
Vacated or relinquished space; room; stead (the departure or removal of another being or thing being implied).
Place
A definite position or passage of a document.
The place of the scripture which he read was this.
Place
Ordinal relation; position in the order of proceeding; as, he said in the first place.
Place
Reception; effect; - implying the making room for.
My word hath no place in you.
Place
Position in the heavens, as of a heavenly body; - usually defined by its right ascension and declination, or by its latitude and longitude.
Place
The position of first, second, or third at the finish, esp. the second position. In betting, to win a bet on a horse for place it must, in the United States, finish first or second, in England, usually, first, second, or third.
Place
To assign a place to; to put in a particular spot or place, or in a certain relative position; to direct to a particular place; to fix; to settle; to locate; as, to place a book on a shelf; to place balls in tennis.
Upon my head they placed a fruitless crown.
Place
To put or set in a particular rank, office, or position; to surround with particular circumstances or relations in life; to appoint to certain station or condition of life; as, in whatever sphere one is placed.
Place such over them to be rulers.
Place
To put out at interest; to invest; to loan; as, to place money in a bank.
Place
To set; to fix; to repose; as, to place confidence in a friend.
Place
To attribute; to ascribe; to set down.
Place it for her chief virtue.
Place
To determine or announce the place of at the finish. Usually, in horse racing only the first three horses are placed officially.
Place
To place-kick ( a goal).
Place
To recognize or identify (a person).
Place
A point located with respect to surface features of some region;
This is a nice place for a picnic
Place
Any area set aside for a particular purpose;
Who owns this place?
The president was concerned about the property across from the White House
Place
An abstract mental location;
He has a special place in my thoughts
A place in my heart
A political system with no place for the less prominent groups
Place
A general vicinity;
He comes from a place near Chicago
Place
The function or position properly or customarily occupied or served by another;
Can you go in my stead?
Took his place
In lieu of
Place
A particular situation;
If you were in my place what would you do?
Place
Where you live at a particular time;
Deliver the package to my home
He doesn't have a home to go to
Your place or mine?
Place
A job in an organization;
He occupied a post in the treasury
Place
The particular portion of space occupied by a physical object;
He put the lamp back in its place
Place
Proper or designated social situation;
He overstepped his place
The responsibilities of a man in his station
Married above her station
Place
A space reserved for sitting (as in a theater or on a train or airplane);
He booked their seats in advance
He sat in someone else's place
Place
The passage that is being read;
He lost his place on the page
Place
Proper or appropriate position or location;
A woman's place is no longer in the kitchen
Place
A public square with room for pedestrians;
They met at Elm Plaza
Grosvenor Place
Place
An item on a list or in a sequence;
In the second place
Moved from third to fifth position
Place
A blank area;
Write your name in the space provided
Place
Put into a certain place or abstract location;
Put your things here
Set the tray down
Set the dogs on the scent of the missing children
Place emphasis on a certain point
Place
Place somebody in a particular situation or location;
He was placed on probation
Place
Assign a rank or rating to;
How would you rank these students?
The restaurant is rated highly in the food guide
Place
Assign a location to;
The company located some of their agents in Los Angeles
Place
To arrange for;
Place a phone call
Place a bet
Place
Take a place in a competition; often followed by an ordinal;
Jerry came in third in the Marathon
Place
Intend (something) to move towards a certain goal;
He aimed his fists towards his opponent's face
Criticism directed at her superior
Direct your anger towards others, not towards yourself
Place
Recognize as being; establish the identity of someone or something;
She identified the man on the 'wanted' poster
Place
Assign to (a job or a home)
Place
Locate;
The film is set in Africa
Place
Estimate;
We put the time of arrival at 8 P.M.
Place
Identify the location or place of;
We localized the source of the infection
Place
Make an investment;
Put money into bonds
Place
Assign to a station
Place
Finish second or better in a horse or dog race;
He bet $2 on number six to place
Place
Sing a note with the correct pitch
Place
A particular point or position in space.
I'll meet you at our usual place.
Place
A residence or dwelling.
She's moved to a new place in the city.
Common Curiosities
Is Location more objective than Place?
Yes, Location is typically more objective, while Place has subjective elements.
Do we use Place when talking about personal experiences?
Yes, Place often carries personal and subjective meanings, associated with memories and feelings.
Can the word Place be used in competitive contexts?
Yes, like "He secured first place in the competition."
Can a Location have multiple meanings like Place?
While Location generally denotes a specific point, it can have varied interpretations based on context, such as in films.
Can an address be termed as a Location?
Yes, an address can denote a Location.
How does Place differ from Location?
Place encompasses both the physical and human attributes of an area, going beyond just a geographical point.
Is every Place also a Location?
Yes, every Place has a specific Location, but not every Location is distinctively a Place.
Are the terms Location and Place interchangeable?
While sometimes used interchangeably, they have different nuances. Location is more specific, while Place carries broader attributes.
Can a room in a house be a Place?
Absolutely, if it holds specific characteristics or memories for someone.
What does Location primarily refer to?
Location primarily refers to a specific point or position, often identified by coordinates or an address.
Which term, Location or Place, is more related to human emotions?
Place is more often associated with human emotions and experiences.
Does every Location have the attributes of a Place?
Not necessarily. While every Location can potentially be described as a Place, not all locations might have distinct attributes or personal meanings.
Are GPS coordinates an example of Location?
Yes, GPS coordinates specify a particular Location.
Do geographical tools like maps focus more on Location or Place?
Maps typically focus on Location, but thematic maps can convey attributes of a Place.
Can Place refer to a home or residence?
Yes, "place" can be used to refer to someone's residence or dwelling.
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Written by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
