pairing
Americannoun
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a coupling.
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Cell Biology. the lining up of the two homologous chromosomes or chromatids of each chromosome pair in meiosis or mitosis.
Etymology
Origin of pairing
Explanation
A pairing is a match between two things or people, like the perfect pairing of chocolate and peanut butter. Use this noun for two folks who work together as a perfect unit, like the pairing of your baseball team's pitcher and catcher, or two things that seem made for each other, like the classic pairing of grilled cheese and tomato soup. You can also describe the act of sorting people into pairs this way: "Our family's secret Santa pairing meant that I had to buy a gift for my great uncle again."
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.
Blending the big-city humor with hilarious Southern comfort might sound like an odd pairing when talking about comedy, but something about the combo of Jerry Seinfeld and Leanne Morgan just works.
From Los Angeles Times • May 13, 2026
The trend is also fueled by a contradictory pairing: families’ fierce desire to protect their babies and a cascade of false information infused into their social media algorithms.
From Salon • May 7, 2026
It works by pairing consultants with OpenAI’s FDEs to help companies use its AI products.
From MarketWatch • May 4, 2026
Training large-language models typically requires the pairing of Nvidia’s graphics processing units with HBM.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 30, 2026
I start handing out the boxes, pairing each person with their job.
From "Five Feet Apart" by Rachael Lippincott
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.
