compartment Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a space into which an area is subdivided
  2. noun a partitioned section, chamber, or separate room within a larger enclosed area

WordNet

Com*part"ment noun
Etymology
F. compartiment, OF. compartir to divide. See Compart.
Definitions
  1. One of the parts into which an inclosed portion of space is divided, as by partitions, or lines; as, the compartments of a cabinet, a house, or a garden.
    In the midst was placed a large compartment composed of grotesque work. Carew.
  2. (Shipbuilding) One of the sections into which the hold of a ship is divided by water-tight bulkheads.

Webster 1913