chair
Americannoun
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a seat, especially for one person, usually having four legs for support and a rest for the back and often having rests for the arms.
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something that serves as a chair or supports like a chair.
The two men clasped hands to make a chair for their injured companion.
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a seat of office or authority.
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a position of authority, as of a judge, professor, etc.
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the person occupying a seat of office, especially the chairperson of a meeting.
The speaker addressed the chair.
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(in an orchestra) the position of a player, assigned by rank; desk.
first clarinet chair.
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Informal. the chair, electric chair.
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(in reinforced-concrete construction) a device for maintaining the position of reinforcing rods or strands during the pouring operation.
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a glassmaker's bench having extended arms on which a blowpipe is rolled in shaping glass.
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British Railroads. a metal block for supporting a rail and securing it to a crosstie or the like.
verb (used with object)
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to place or seat in a chair.
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to install in office.
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to preside over; act as chairperson of.
to chair a committee.
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British. to carry (a hero or victor) aloft in triumph.
verb (used without object)
idioms
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take the chair,
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to begin or open a meeting.
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to preside at a meeting; act as chairperson.
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get the chair, to be sentenced to die in the electric chair.
noun
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a seat with a back on which one person sits, typically having four legs and often having arms
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an official position of authority
a chair on the board of directors
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the person chairing a debate or meeting
the speaker addressed the chair
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a professorship
the chair of German
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railways an iron or steel cradle bolted to a sleeper in which the rail sits and is locked in position
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short for sedan chair
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chairing a debate or meeting
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to preside as chairman for a meeting, etc
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an informal name for electric chair
verb
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to preside over (a meeting)
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to carry aloft in a sitting position after a triumph or great achievement
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to provide with a chair of office
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to install in a chair
Gender
Is it chair, chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson? See chairperson.
Other Word Forms
- chairless adjective
- unchair verb (used with object)
Etymology
Origin of chair
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English chaiere, from Old French, from Latin cathedra; cathedra
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.
On Saturdays, a Sacramento clinic repurposes the reclining chairs reserved for patients recovering from abortion procedures for the people coming in for the IVs.
Kitted out with running water, rocking chairs, big leafy plants and an aquarium, the space in Kings Heath, Birmingham has proven popular for those looking to de-stress from their busy lives.
From BBC
The chair of the National Transportation Safety Board last month singled out Hollywood Burbank Airport as having a concerning risk of a midair collision.
From Los Angeles Times
The gender gap is wider in influential positions, such as economics department chairs and the editorial board members of economics journals.
From Salon
In the end, Hassett didn’t get the nod for Fed chair.
From Barron's
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.
