Emily Dickinson Lexicon

DEP-O-SI'TION, n. [L. depositio.]

1. The act of laying or throwing down; as, soil is formed by the deposition of fine particles, during a flood.
2. That which is thrown down; that which is lodged; as, banks are sometimes depositions of alluvial matter.
3. The act of giving testimony under oath.
4. The attested written testimony of a witness; an affidavit.
5. The act of dethroning a king, or the degrading of a person from an office or station; a divesting of sovereignty, or of office and dignity; a depriving of clerical orders. A deposition differs from abdication; an abdication being voluntary, and a deposition, compulsory.