Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Something, such as a chair or bench, that may be sat on.
  • noun The part on which one rests in sitting.
  • noun A place in which one may sit.
  • noun The right to occupy such a place or a ticket indicating this right.
  • noun The buttocks.
  • noun The part of a garment that covers the buttocks.
  • noun A part serving as the base of something else.
  • noun The surface or part on which another part sits or rests.
  • noun The place where something is located or based.
  • noun A center of authority; a capital.
  • noun A place of abode or residence, especially a large house that is part of an estate.
  • noun Membership in an organization, such as a legislative body or stock exchange, that is obtained by appointment, election, or purchase.
  • noun The manner of sitting on a horse.
  • intransitive verb To place in or on a seat.
  • intransitive verb To cause or assist to sit down.
  • intransitive verb To provide with a particular seat.
  • intransitive verb To have or provide seats for.
  • intransitive verb To install in a position of authority or eminence.
  • intransitive verb To fix firmly in place.
  • intransitive verb To rest on or fit into another part.
  • idiom (by the seat of (one's) pants) In a manner based on intuition and experience rather than method.
  • idiom (by the seat of (one's) pants) Without the use of instruments.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A place in which to sit.
  • noun The horizontal portion of a chair or other furniture designed for sitting.
  • noun A piece of furniture made for sitting; e.g. a chair, stool or bench; any improvised place for sitting.
  • noun The part of an object or individual (usually the buttocks) directly involved in sitting.
  • noun The part of a piece of clothing (usually pants or trousers) covering the buttocks.
  • noun A membership in an organization, particularly a representative body.
  • noun The location of a governing body.
  • noun certain Commonwealth countries an electoral district, especially for a national legislature.
  • noun The starting point of a fire.
  • verb transitive To put an object into a place where it will rest.
  • verb transitive To provide places to sit.
  • verb obsolete, intransitive To rest; to lie down.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English sete, probably from Old Norse sæti; see sed- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Middle English, from Old Norse sæti, compare Old English set

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Examples

  • Things looked very tempting, and he had half a mind to petition for a seat at the table; but he began to think that, even should he succeed in his request, a _seat_ would be all he could gain; for the old lady attacked the eatables very much in the style of a school-boy just come home for the holidays.

    A Grandmother's Recollections Ella Rodman Church

  • Then came “the seat of war” in Afghanistan, which covered all that remained of the wall, and the other day, when the clerks of the Intelligence Department came to fix up our newest “seat of war, ” it was discovered that we had on hand so many “seats of war” that there was no room on the wall for more.

    On the Zulu War 1906

  • A garden-seat, with a canopy of vines to shade it, may not be any more comfortable, _as a seat_, than any wooden bench, but the touch of beauty and grace imparted by the vine that roofs it makes it far more enjoyable than an expensive seat without the vine would be to the person who has a taste for pleasing and attractive things, simply because it pleases the eye by its outlines, thus appealing to the sense of the beautiful.

    Amateur Gardencraft A Book for the Home-Maker and Garden Lover 1882

  • We're sending a message to legislators that until they come around on this issue -- their seat is at risk.

    Cynthia Nixon: Fight Back on Election Day Cynthia Nixon 2010

  • We're sending a message to legislators that until they come around on this issue -- their seat is at risk.

    Cynthia Nixon: Fight Back on Election Day Cynthia Nixon 2010

  • This seat is a decent pick-up opportunity for Democrats in 2010 but it will not be a priority for the state party.

    Matthew Yglesias » Voinovich Retiring 2009

  • (Soundbite of laughter) MARTIN: Can I ask you, what do you think it says that the race for your seat is as tight as it now is?

    Illinois Sen. Roland Burris Prepares Exit, Has No Regrets 2010

  • We're sending a message to legislators that until they come around on this issue -- their seat is at risk.

    Cynthia Nixon: Fight Back on Election Day Cynthia Nixon 2010

  • If Alexi Giannoulias, the Democrat running for Illinois's Senate seat, can turn out Democratic votes in the city and run strongly in the surrounding counties, the seat is his.

    Illinois Senate Race: Mark Kirk And Alexi Giannoulias At Their Best, And Worst The Huffington Post News Team 2010

  • We're sending a message to legislators that until they come around on this issue -- their seat is at risk.

    Cynthia Nixon: Fight Back on Election Day Cynthia Nixon 2010

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  • See more at Seat.

    November 16, 2022