View synonyms for chair

chair

[chair]

noun

  1. a seat, especially for one person, usually having four legs for support and a rest for the back and often having rests for the arms.

  2. something that serves as a chair or supports like a chair.

    The two men clasped hands to make a chair for their injured companion.

  3. a seat of office or authority.

  4. a position of authority, as of a judge, professor, etc.

  5. the person occupying a seat of office, especially the chairperson of a meeting.

    The speaker addressed the chair.

  6. (in an orchestra) the position of a player, assigned by rank; desk.

    first clarinet chair.

  7. Informal.,  the chair, electric chair.

  8. chairlift.

  9. sedan chair.

  10. (in reinforced-concrete construction) a device for maintaining the position of reinforcing rods or strands during the pouring operation.

  11. a glassmaker's bench having extended arms on which a blowpipe is rolled in shaping glass.

  12. British Railroads.,  a metal block for supporting a rail and securing it to a crosstie or the like.



verb (used with object)

  1. to place or seat in a chair.

  2. to install in office.

  3. to preside over; act as chairperson of.

    to chair a committee.

  4. British.,  to carry (a hero or victor) aloft in triumph.

verb (used without object)

  1. to preside over a meeting, committee, etc.

chair

/ tʃɛə /

noun

  1. a seat with a back on which one person sits, typically having four legs and often having arms

  2. an official position of authority

    a chair on the board of directors

  3. the person chairing a debate or meeting

    the speaker addressed the chair

  4. a professorship

    the chair of German

  5. railways an iron or steel cradle bolted to a sleeper in which the rail sits and is locked in position

  6. short for sedan chair

  7. chairing a debate or meeting

  8. to preside as chairman for a meeting, etc

  9. an informal name for electric chair

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to preside over (a meeting)

  2. to carry aloft in a sitting position after a triumph or great achievement

  3. to provide with a chair of office

  4. to install in a chair

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Gender Note

Is it chair, chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson? See chairperson.
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Other Word Forms

  • chairless adjective
  • unchair verb (used with object)
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Word History and Origins

Origin of chair1

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English chaiere, from Old French, from Latin cathedra; cathedra
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Word History and Origins

Origin of chair1

C13: from Old French chaiere, from Latin cathedra, from Greek kathedra, from kata- down + hedra seat; compare cathedral
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. take the chair,

    1. to begin or open a meeting.

    2. to preside at a meeting; act as chairperson.

  2. get the chair, to be sentenced to die in the electric chair.

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

A sniff of a rotting old chair frightens Indy so much, he wets the rug.

The US president would chair this so-called "Board of Peace" and Sir Tony, aged 72, would be a member.

From BBC

"The defendant then approaches the head chef; he grabs him and tries to punch him to the face," said Mr Newman, adding police were called when Sharwarq then armed himself with a chair.

From BBC

RPM Steak – RPM Steak is a classic two-story steakhouse with high ceilings, a marble bar, and black wood tables, complemented by upholstered white chairs.

From Salon

Dame Meg Hillier, who chairs the influential Treasury select committee, said ending the limit was not only the right thing to do morally, it also made economic sense in the long term.

From BBC

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Related Words

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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