desk

1. a piece of furniture like a table, usually with drawers in it, that you sit at to write and work:
Marie was sitting at her desk.
2. a place where you can get information or use a particular service in a hotel, airport etc:
the reception desk
the check-in desk
3. an office that deals with a particular subject, especially in newspapers or television
the news/sports desk
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ adjectives
▪ tidy How come your desk is always so tidy?
▪ cluttered (=covered with papers, books etc in an untidy way) His desk is so cluttered he can't find anything.
▪ empty (=that no one is using) There are one or two empty desks in the office.
▪ a school desk The children are at their school desks by 8:30 in the morning.
▪ an office desk I got back from holiday to find piles of papers on my office desk.
▪ a writing desk (=that you use for writing letters etc) Under the window was a small writing desk.
▪ a wooden/mahogany/rosewood etc desk He sat at a plain wooden desk.
■ verbs
▪ sit at a desk I don't want to do a job in which I'm sitting at a desk all day.
▪ get up from your desk He got up from his desk to welcome the visitors.
▪ tidy your desk I need to tidy my desk.
▪ clear your desk (=remove all the papers etc from it) It's a good idea to clear your desk regularly.
■ desk + NOUN
▪ a desk job (=working mostly at a desk in an office) He left his desk job to become a gardener.
▪ a desk drawer I think I left my car keys in the desk drawer.
▪ a desk lamp Don't forget to switch off the desk lamp.

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

desk

desk [desk desks] [desk] [desk] noun
1. a piece of furniture like a table, usually with drawers in it, that you sit at to read, write, work, etc
• He used to be a pilot but now he has a desk job.

2. a place where you can get information or be served at an airport, a hotel, etc
• the check-in desk
• the reception desk

see also cash desk, front desk

3. an office at a newspaper, television company, etc. that deals with a particular subject
• the sports desk
see also city desk, news desk
Word Origin:
late Middle English: from medieval Latin desca, probably based on Provençal desca ‘basket’ or Italian desco ‘table, butcher's block’, both based on Latin discus from Greek diskos.
Example Bank:
• A very strange request landed on my desk this morning.
• He got up from his desk and went to the window.
• He was sitting at his desk working when we got home.
• I left the file on your desk.
• I worked the front desk as one of my first jobs.
• Leave your valuables at the reception desk.
• My desk gets very cluttered if I don't clear it at the end of each day.
• Papers littered the desk and the floor.
• She called the front desk to let them know that he would be arriving.
• She paid for the book at the cash desk.
• Staff experiencing problems with their computers should call the help desk.
• The empty desk suggested she had already gone home.
• The manager sat frowning behind his desk throughout the whole interview.
• There was a long queue at the check-in desk.
• They put me on desk duty for a month.
• We asked the man on the information desk for a map of the city.

• a computer which takes up less desk space

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 4th Edition

desk / desk / noun [ C ] (TABLE)

desk

A1 a type of table that you can work at, often one with drawers:

an office/school desk

She sat at her desk writing letters.

He had a pile of papers on his desk.

The report arrived on/landed on/reached my desk (= I received it) this morning.

See picture in the office

desk / desk / noun [ C ] (SERVICE AREA)

a place, often with a counter (= a long flat narrow surface) especially in a hotel or airport, where you can get information or service:

a check-in/information/reception desk

desk / desk / noun [ C ] (NEWSPAPER OFFICE)

an office that deals with a particular type of news for a newspaper or broadcasting company:

the foreign/sports desk

Now let's hear from Sue at our travel desk.

Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary

desk

/desk/
(desks)

Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.

1.
A desk is a table, often with drawers, which you sit at to write or work.
N-COUNT

2.
The place in a hotel, hospital, airport, or other building where you check in or obtain information is referred to as a particular desk.
I spoke to the girl on the reception desk...
N-SING: usu supp N

3.
A particular department of a broadcasting company, or of a newspaper or magazine company, can be referred to as a particular desk.
Over now to Simon Ingram at the sports desk.
N-SING: supp N

Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary:

desk

desk /ˈdɛsk/ noun, pl desks [count]
1 : a piece of furniture that is like a table and often has drawers
✦People often sit at desks when they are writing or using a computer.
• a cluttered desk
• a classroom with desks arranged in rows
✦Often desk refers specifically to the desk a person uses to do his or her job.
• I'm sorry I missed your call. I've been away from my desk.
- often used before another noun
• a desk lamp/calendar/chair
• She left her desk job [=the job that she did while sitting at a desk] to become a farmer.
- see picture at office
2 : a place where people can get information or be served at an office, a hotel, etc.
• an information desk at an airport
• We will ask for directions to the restaurant at the front desk.
• We went to the reception desk to check into our room.
3 : the part of a company or organization that deals with a particular subject
• the television network's financial/foreign desk [=department]
• the newspaper's sports desk
• the news desk [=the office where news is gathered to be reported in a newspaper, on television, etc.]
- see also city desk