siege
- the act or process of surrounding and attacking a fortified place in such a way as to isolate it from help and supplies, for the purpose of lessening the resistance of the defenders and thereby making capture possible.
- any prolonged or persistent effort to overcome resistance.
- a series of illnesses, troubles, or annoyances besetting a person or group: a siege of head colds.
- a prolonged period of trouble or annoyance.
- Also sedge. Ornithology.
- a flock of herons.
- the station of a heron at prey.
- the shelf or floor of a glassmaking furnace on which the glass pots are set.
- Obsolete.
- a seat, especially one used by a person of distinction, as a throne.
- station as to rank or class.
- to assail or assault; besiege.
- lay siege to, to besiege: The army laid siege to the city for over a month.
Origin of siege
Synonyms for siege
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comRelated Words for siege
closure, restriction, stoppage, roadblock, barricade, siege, encirclement, beset, bedevil, plague, annoy, clog, bar, wall, stop, snag, obstruction, obstacle, impediment, hindranceExamples from the Web for siege
Contemporary Examples of siege
The Kurds claimed at least 100 Islamic militants were killed in the two-day battle to lift the siege.
Steve Garth, who works in Circular Quay, was inside the Cartier jewelry store near the café when the siege began.
Jihadi Siege in Sydney Ends in GunfightCourtney Subramanian, Lennox Samuels, Chris Allbritton
December 15, 2014
The Siege of Boston marked the opening phase of the American Revolution.
The British Royals Reinvade Brooklyn: William and Kate Come Watch Basketball on Historic Battle SiteJustin Jones
December 6, 2014
In late August, U.S. airpower and Iranian-backed militias broke the ISIS siege on the town of Amerli.
In Iraq, Tehran was our silent partner, working to break an ISIS siege and edging out Maliki.
Historical Examples of siege
The return from this Crusade was as disastrous as that from the siege of Troy.
Cameos from English History, from Rollo to Edward IICharlotte Mary Yonge
After the first day of the siege there was scant leisure for funeral rites.
Camps, Quarters and Casual PlacesArchibald Forbes
One thousand of the best men in the fleet were sent to assist in the siege.
The Life of Horatio Lord NelsonRobert Southey
They used every device of ingenious minds to push the siege.
The Rock of ChickamaugaJoseph A. Altsheler
Evidently the enemy was bent on the siege of Fort Providence.
The Field of IceJules Verne
siege
- the offensive operations carried out to capture a fortified place by surrounding it, severing its communications and supply lines, and deploying weapons against it
- (as modifier)siege warfare
- a persistent attempt to gain something
- a long tedious period, as of illness, etc
- obsolete a seat or throne
- lay siege to to besiege
- (tr) to besiege or assail
Word Origin for siege
Word Origin and History for siege
early 13c., "a seat" (as in Siege Perilous, early 13c., the vacant seat at Arthur's Round Table, according to prophecy to be occupied safely only by the knight destined to find the Holy Grail), from Old French sege "seat, throne," from Vulgar Latin *sedicum "seat," from Latin sedere "sit" (see sedentary). The military sense is attested from c.1300; the notion is of an army "sitting down" before a fortress.