sequence

American  

[see-kwuhns] / ˈsi kwəns /

noun

• sequences
  plural

1. the following of one thing after another; succession.

2. order of succession.

   a list of books in alphabetical sequence.

   Synonyms:

   arrangement

3. a continuous or connected series.

   a sonnet sequence.

4. something that follows; a subsequent event; result; consequence.

   Synonyms:

   sequel, outcome

5. Music. a melodic or harmonic pattern repeated three or more times at different pitches with or without modulation.

6. Liturgy. a hymn sometimes sung after the gradual and before the gospel; prose.

7. Movies. a series of related scenes or shots, as those taking place in one locale or at one time, that make up one episode of the film narrative.

8. Cards. a series of three or more cards following one another in order of value, especially of the same suit.

9. Genetics. the linear order of monomers in a polymer, as nucleotides in DNA or amino acids in a protein.

10. Mathematics. a set whose elements have an order similar to that of the positive integers; a map from the positive integers to a given set.

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verb (used with object)

• sequences,
  present (3rd person singular)
• sequenced,
  past participle,  past
• sequencing
  present participle

1. to place in a sequence.

2. Biochemistry. to determine the order of (chemical units in a polymer chain), especially nucleotides in DNA or RNA or amino acids in a protein.

sequence British  

/ ˈsiːkwəns /

noun

1. an arrangement of two or more things in a successive order

2. the successive order of two or more things

   chronological sequence

3. a sequentially ordered set of related things or ideas

4. an action or event that follows another or others

5. 1. cards a set of three or more consecutive cards, usually of the same suit

   2. bridge a set of two or more consecutive cards

6. music an arrangement of notes or chords repeated several times at different pitches

7. maths

   1. an ordered set of numbers or other mathematical entities in one-to-one correspondence with the integers 1 to n

   2. an ordered infinite set of mathematical entities in one-to-one correspondence with the natural numbers

8. a section of a film constituting a single continuous uninterrupted episode

9. biochem the unique order of amino acids in the polypeptide chain of a protein or of nucleotides in the polynucleotide chain of DNA or RNA

10. RC Church another word for prose

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verb

1. to arrange in a sequence

2. biochem to determine the order of the units comprising (a protein, nucleic acid, genome, etc)

sequence Scientific  

/ sē′kwəns /

1. A set of quantities ordered in the same manner as the positive integers, in which there is always the same relation between each quantity and the one succeeding it. A sequence can be finite, such as {1, 3, 5, 7, 9}, or it can be infinite, such as {1, 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, … 1/n}.

2. Also called progression

3. The order of subunits that make up a polymer, especially the order of nucleotides in a nucleic acid or of the amino acids in a protein.

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1. To determine the order of subunits of a polymer.

Synonym Usage

See series.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• undersequence
  noun
• unsequenced
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• sequences
  plural

Participles

• sequencing
  present
• sequenced
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• sequence
  simple
• sequences
  simple
• have sequenced
  perfect
• has sequenced
  perfect
• am sequencing
  progressive
• are sequencing
  progressive
• is sequencing
  progressive
• have been sequencing
  perfect progressive
• has been sequencing
  perfect progressive

Past

• sequenced
  simple
• had sequenced
  perfect
• was sequencing
  progressive
• were sequencing
  progressive
• had been sequencing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will sequence
  simple
• will have sequenced
  perfect
• will be sequencing
  progressive
• will have been sequencing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of sequence

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Late Latin sequentia, equivalent to sequ- (stem of sequī “to follow”) + -entia noun suffix; see -ence

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Explanation

When things come in sequence, they come in a specific order. It could be a chronological sequence, a sequence following a pattern (red-blue-brown, red-blue-brown), or a cause-and-effect sequence. Sequence can also be a verb. When you sequence something, you put it in order. The prom committee had the task of sequencing dance music––even if playing "Celebrate" as the final dance and not the first felt out of sequence to the DJ, it was their call.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sequence sequences sequenced sequencing

The sequence has some clever gags, but you’re distracted by the awareness of being narratively underwhelmed.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026

Any sequence of events that leads a person, especially someone like your father-in-law who is 81 years old, to effectively make himself penniless and dependent on others raises serious alarm bells.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 22, 2026

Importantly, these modifications do not alter the DNA sequence itself.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 21, 2026

Recent Fed communication reinforces Deutsche Bank analysts’ baseline forecast for a quarterly pace of rate hikes through March, rather than a more accelerated sequence, they said in a note.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026

The first story, about the duel between Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton, is out of sequence.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

The new work builds on those findings by directly comparing RNA with single stranded DNA that contained essentially the same sequences.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 2, 2026

The company’s press release goes into more detail, but basically says that Claude was prompted to search through a massive database of DNA sequences for reverse transcriptases, enzymes that copy RNA into DNA.

From Salon ● Sep. 30, 2026

The fight sequences have an engaging messiness, the characters often fumbling around rather than delivering expert moves.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026

Openings that had long been considered dead because players had concluded they were so tactically weak have been revived because the engines saw sequences that world champions couldn’t.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026

Learning sequences in music: A contemporary music learning theory.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

Rather than collecting all new samples, the team sequenced DNA from tissues that veterinarians had already obtained for diagnostic purposes.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 27, 2026

A patient’s tumor is surgically removed and then sequenced, allowing researchers to figure out which mutated proteins are expressed on the cancer cells.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026

After a tumor is sequenced and a therapy given, patients still need to be monitored for signs the cancer has returned.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026

Thousands of animal genomes have now been sequenced, but comparing their long-term evolution has remained difficult.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 25, 2026

Similar to other sequenced learning approaches, such as Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development or scaffolding, Gordon’s approach relies on a gradual increase in skill level difficulty as the student progresses.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

“RMS expects production to increase quarter-on-quarter with higher grade mine sequencing planned at both Dalgaranga and Cue,” which should reduce costs, Redfern says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026

The scientists combined DNA sequencing, chemical profiling and conventional laboratory testing to identify the bacteria associated with the damaged mushrooms.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 11, 2026

That’s a tricky decision to make, because the criteria for impactful album sequencing are not at all the same for a live show.

From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2026

British chemists Shankar Balasubramanian and David Klenerman, for their contribution to next-generation DNA sequencing, could be honoured, according to the science journalist.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

In a blink of pure fantasy, I suddenly saw myself walking away from Dell Duke's grimy car with a tiny glass vial of her blood sample for genome sequencing.

From "Counting by 7s" by Holly Goldberg Sloan

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Related Words

• arrangement
• array
• progression
• string

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