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sit-in

[ sit-in ]
/ ˈsɪtˌɪn /
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noun
any organized protest in which a group of people peacefully occupy and refuse to leave a premises: Sixty students staged a sit-in outside the dean's office.
an organized passive protest, especially against racial segregation, in which the demonstrators occupy seats prohibited to them, as in restaurants and other public places.
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Origin of sit-in

1955–60; noun use of verb phrase sit in (a place); cf. sit1, -in3
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use sit-in in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for sit-in

sit-in

noun
a form of civil disobedience in which demonstrators occupy seats in a public place and refuse to move as a protest
another term for sit-down strike
verb sit in (intr, adverb)
(often foll by for) to deputize (for)
(foll by on) to take part (in) as a visitor or guestwe sat in on Professor Johnson's seminar
to organize or take part in a sit-in
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

Other Idioms and Phrases with sit-in

sit in

1

Attend or take part as a visitor, as in My son's jazz group asked me to sit in tonight. It is often put as sit in on, as in They asked me to sit in on their poker game. [Mid-1800s]

2

Take part in a sit-in, that is, an organized protest in which seated participants refuse to move. For example, The students threatened to sit in unless the dean was reinstated. [c. 1940]

3

sit in on. Visit or observe, as in I'm sitting in on his class, but not for credit. [Early 1900s]

4

sit in for. Substitute for a regular member of a group, as in I'm just sitting in for Harold, who couldn't make it.

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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