sit on
Britishverb
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to be a member of (a committee, etc)
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informal to suppress
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informal to check or rebuke
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Also, sit upon.
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Confer about or deliberate over, as in Another attorney was called to sit on the case . [Mid-1400s]
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Suppress or repress, as in I know they were sitting on some evidence . [Early 1900s]
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Postpone action or resolution regarding, as in I don't know why the city council is sitting on their decision . [Early 1900s]
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Rebuke sharply, reprimand, as in If he interrupts one more time I'm going to sit on him . [ Slang ; second half of 1800s]
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.
You could also let the check sit on the table before reaching for it, Clayman suggests.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 17, 2026
CAR T-cell therapy can recognize proteins that naturally sit on the outside of cancer cells.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026
A leather jacket and a pair of black cowboy boots sit on an office wall display.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
"You don't want to wait, sit on your hands for whatever time it takes to get through elections," he said.
From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026
I could sit on the stage, but the band would start setting up soon.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
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.
