sit
verb (used without object)
to rest with the body supported by the buttocks or thighs; be seated.
sit
1 American
[sit]
/ sɪt /
verb (used without object)
sat,
sate,
sat,
sitten,
sitting
-
to rest with the body supported by the buttocks or thighs; be seated.
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to be located or situated.
The house sits well up on the slope.
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to rest or lie (usually followed by on orupon ).
An aura of greatness sits easily upon him.
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to place oneself in position for an artist, photographer, etc.; pose.
to sit for a portrait.
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to remain quiet or inactive.
They let the matter sit.
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(of a bird) to perch or roost.
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(of a hen) to cover eggs to hatch them; brood.
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to fit, rest, or hang, as a garment.
The jacket sits well on your shoulders.
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to occupy a place or have a seat in an official assembly or in an official capacity, as a legislator, judge, or bishop.
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to be convened or in session, as an assembly.
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to act as a baby-sitter.
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(of wind) to blow from the indicated direction.
The wind sits in the west tonight.
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to be accepted or considered in the way indicated.
Something about his looks just didn't sit right with me.
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Informal. to be acceptable to the stomach.
Something I ate for breakfast didn't sit too well.
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Chiefly British. to take a test or examination.
I’m studying now, and I plan to sit in June.
verb (used with object)
sat,
sate,
sat,
sitten,
sitting
-
to cause to sit; seat (often followed bydown ).
Sit yourself down. He sat me near him.
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to sit astride or keep one's seat on (a horse or other animal).
She sits her horse gracefully.
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to provide seating accommodations or seating room for; seat.
Our dining-room table only sits six people.
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Informal. to serve as baby-sitter for.
A neighbor can sit the children while you go out.
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Chiefly British. to take (a test or examination).
She finally received permission to sit the exam at a later date.
verb phrase
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sit out
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to stay to the end of.
Though bored, we sat out the play.
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to surpass in endurance.
He sat out his tormentors.
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to keep one's seat during (a dance, competition, etc.); fail to participate in.
We sat out all the Latin-American numbers.
-
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sit in on to be a spectator, observer, or visitor at.
to sit in on classes.
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sit on / upon
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sit in
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to attend or take part as a visitor or temporary participant.
to sit in at a bridge game; to sit in for the band's regular pianist.
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to take part in a sit-in.
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sit up
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to rise from a supine to a sitting position.
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to delay the hour of retiring beyond the usual time.
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to sit upright; hold oneself erect.
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Informal. to become interested or astonished.
We all sat up when the holiday was announced.
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sit down
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to take a seat.
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to descend to a sitting position; alight.
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to take up a position, as to encamp or besiege.
The military forces sat down at the approaches to the city.
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idioms
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sit tight, to bide one's time; take no action.
I'm going to sit tight till I hear from you.
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sit on one's hands,
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to fail to applaud.
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to fail to take appropriate action.
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sit pretty, to be in a comfortable situation.
He's been sitting pretty ever since he got that new job.
sit
2
American
[sit]
/ sɪt /
verb
sit
1
British
/ sɪt /
verb
-
(also tr; when intr, often foll by down, in, or on) to adopt or rest in a posture in which the body is supported on the buttocks and thighs and the torso is more or less upright
to sit on a chair
sit a horse
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(tr) to cause to adopt such a posture
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(of an animal) to adopt or rest in a posture with the hindquarters lowered to the ground
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(of a bird) to perch or roost
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(of a hen or other bird) to cover eggs to hatch them; brood
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to be situated or located
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(of the wind) to blow from the direction specified
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to adopt and maintain a posture for one's portrait to be painted, etc
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to occupy or be entitled to a seat in some official capacity, as a judge, elected representative, etc
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(of a deliberative body) to be convened or in session
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to remain inactive or unused
his car sat in the garage for a year
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to rest or lie as specified
the nut was sitting so awkwardly that he couldn't turn it
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(of a garment) to fit or hang as specified
that dress sits well on you
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to weigh, rest, or lie as specified
greatness sits easily on him
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(tr) to take (an examination)
he's sitting his bar finals
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(usually foll by for) to be a candidate (for a qualification)
he's sitting for a BA
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(intr; in combination) to look after a specified person or thing for someone else
granny-sit
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(tr) to have seating capacity for
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informal well placed or established financially, socially, etc
-
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to wait patiently; bide one's time
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to maintain one's position, stand, or opinion firmly
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SIT
2
British
abbreviation
sit
More Idioms
Commonly Confused
See set.
Etymology
Origin of sit1
First recorded before 900; Middle English sitten, Old English sittan; cognate with Dutch zitten, German sitzen, Old Norse sitja; akin to Gothic sitan, Latin sedēre, Greek hézesthai (base hed- ); cf. set, sedate, cathedra, nest
Origin of sit2
From Latin
Explanation
Sit down! When you sit, you rest your weight on your bottom instead of standing on your feet. You can sit in a chair, sit on the floor, or sit in a giant bowl of chocolate pudding if you want to. When you tell a good dog to sit, she lowers her hindquarters to the floor, with her back legs bent. But when you sit ten people at your little kitchen table, you provide seats for them, and when you sit for an artist, you pose while she paints or draws your portrait. Objects sit by simply not moving: "The cars sit, stuck in rush hour traffic, while the subway speeds past."
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.
See Examples For:
They couldn’t just sit on stuff, because they were part of an active political process.
From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026
The useful disclosures sit lower down, in terms of how much of each company’s wafer supply is grown in-house and how much comes from China.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
Now I live in Gurugram, where footpaths vanish into rubble and garbage, are abruptly blocked by parked vehicles or construction, or sit uncomfortably high above the road.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
“I don’t even have an office. I sit in an open area with the rest of my team. …I remind myself where I came from, and that I’m also here temporarily.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Calvin and I sink onto a couple of stools that sit in front of the open counter.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Following an interim report from the SIT, Ayodhya police registered a case of alleged embezzlement, naming eight people.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
After remaining missing for several weeks, Mr Revanna had released a video on 27 May in which he said that he would appear before the SIT on Friday.
From BBC ● May 31, 2024
How the durations of exercise and rest are structured can affect the impact of SIT on physiological responses.
From Science Daily ● May 15, 2024
“Being able to really SIT in this grief allows you to feel the moments of joy and gratitude for having loved someone that deep. And we loved him deeply.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 15, 2023
“Alex Douglas, turn around and SIT DOWN,” she repeated.
From "Eleven" by Tom Rogers
And that was after the three-time All-Pro got no training-camp reps with Stafford, who sat out because of a back issue.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
After Takaichi attended the annual ceremony in Hiroshima on Thursday, she sat down for a televised meeting with survivors.
From Barron's ● Aug. 9, 2026
"We sat there all night waiting to be seen in a corridor and then were moved into a room where we had a chair," she says.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
I have still sat across from friends who lost a startling amount of weight in a startling amount of time and said nothing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
He sat at the faux wooden table and his spine wilted.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Investors regard Bloom’s solid oxide fuel cell as a robust source of power to sate data centers’ endless appetite.
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
I always order chicken sate and the green papaya salad.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 20, 2026
It seems likely that Sir Keir's rhetoric in PMQs will sate some Labour MPs for now.
From BBC ● Jan. 21, 2026
It has said it can help sate power-hungry data centers, electric vehicles and growing industries.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 10, 2025
Dr. Trefusis did not note their absence, but as Bono sate himself down beside us, greeted him.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
After the death of Sethon, who had sitten fourteen years on the throne, Tharaca ascended it, and reigned eighteen years.
From The Ancient History of the Egyptians, Carthaginians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Medes and Persians, Macedonians and Grecians (Vol. 1 of 6) by Rollin, Charles
I've seed it written, a feller was sitten on a marvel stone, and our Lord came by; and he said to him, 'What's the matter with thee, my man?'
From Primitive Psycho-Therapy and Quackery by Lawrence, Robert Means
After the Ambassadour with his gentlemen had sitten an houre and more, there came three or foure chauses, and brought them into the great Turkes presence.
From The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 05 Central and Southern Europe by Hakluyt, Richard
"Of the things which we have spoken, this is the pith: that we have such an high priest that is sitten on the right hand of the seat of majesty in heaven," 1.
From The first New Testament printed in English by
Not even the wild Highlands have sitten through so many calls as we have done here in Galloway and the South.
From The Men of the Moss-Hags Being a history of adventure taken from the papers of William Gordon of Earlstoun in Galloway by Crockett, S. R. (Samuel Rutherford)
Those offers can look tempting, especially when you’re sitting on a large sum.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
He has been tracking them via AirTags and said one still seemed to be in the UK, sitting in Liverpool John Lennon Airport.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
Buford was sitting in front of a massive ficus tree, with roots the size of a five-year-old child coming up out of the ground.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
Without Raleigh’s contributions, the team has underperformed, currently sitting under .500 and chasing a playoff spot.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
He’s sitting at the table, and his blue-framed glasses come complete with matching blue straps.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
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.
