sofa
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of sofa
1615–25; < Turkish < Arabic ṣuffah platform used as a seat
Explanation
A sofa is a piece of furniture that a few people can comfortably sit on together. On a rainy weekend, you and your friends might pile on the sofa to watch scary movies and eat popcorn. A sofa is similar to a couch — officially, it needs to seat at least three or more people to qualify as a sofa. If only two people can fit, it's a love seat. And if it's only big enough for you and your pet hedgehog, it's an armchair. Sofas are typically upholstered, with a high back and arms. The word originated from Turkish, from an Arabic root, suffa, "bench of stone or wood."
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.
I explored this question in my book "The Cat's Meow: How Cats Evolved from the Savanna to Your Sofa."
From Salon • Aug. 11, 2023
As a result there were a series of high profile failures in 2022 including Made.com, Sofa Workshop, M&Co and Joules.
From BBC • Dec. 29, 2022
Almost everything in the couple’s trove of a store on London’s Pimlico Road comes in a correspondingly imposing scale — from the skirted expanse of the Upton Sofa to their signature globular glass lanterns.
From New York Times • Nov. 10, 2022
Article Ceni Sofa: Kushlan says this sofa’s 83-inch width and 35-inch depth offer “comfortable proportions for lounging.”
From Seattle Times • Oct. 18, 2021
The villa had belonged to the mistress of one of the last Kings of Alca: the drawing-room retained its old furniture, and in it was still to be found the Sofa of the Favourite.
From Penguin Island by France, Anatole
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.
