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My mother tongue isn't English, and recently I came across this expression:

You have a collection of smileys at your disposal.

For me, the word disposal means "discarding some waste, throwing something away, getting rid of something".

I have been searching the web, and I found a Collins Dictionairy's (online, british version) description:

Disposal (noun) - the power or opportunity to make use of someone or something (esp in the phrase at one's disposal)

That matches the use I have mention before, but for me, it still sounds wrong.

Is the expression "having something at your disposal" correct?

Usernew
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Arcsn
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1 Answers1

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it still sounds wrong

It sounds perfectly normal to me and it's used reasonably commonly.

As a programmer, I have a number of useful tools at my disposal including a powerful IDE and a well documented API.

James Webster
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  • Thank you. It is the first time I came across and it sounded kind of weird to me. – Arcsn Oct 21 '15 at 16:26
  • You're welcome, but no need to say thanks on Stack Exchange. You should just accept (click the little green tick) and optionally upvote if you found an answer helpful. – James Webster Oct 21 '15 at 16:27
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    Completely normal to me as well (a Brit). Many words in English can mean different things depending on context. – ssav Oct 21 '15 at 16:28
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    @Arcsn it is not advisable to accept an answer so soon. Please read this help section. – Usernew Oct 21 '15 at 16:29
  • @Usernew, I accept answers as soon as receive an answer that answers [my] question well – James Webster Oct 21 '15 at 16:31
  • @JamesWebster Others should be given a chance to present their answers. Answers with more in-depth explanation so that the asker will have a better understanding of it. Details like why "having something at your disposal" is correct, and what it means and so on. – Usernew Oct 21 '15 at 16:34
  • @JamesWebster The question is "is 'at your disposal' correct? why - why not?" If you want to say something like "it sounds fine to me" or some minor detail, then say it via comment. :) – Usernew Oct 21 '15 at 16:38