sen·try /'sentri/ n a soldier standing as a guard outside a building, entrance etc
'sentry box n a narrow shelter for a sentry to stand in while on duty
Seoul /səʊl/ the capital city of South Korea, a business, industrial, and CULTURAL centre. The Olympic Games were held in Seoul in 1988.
se·pal /'sepəl/ n tech any of the small leaves directly under a flower → see picture at FLOWER
sep·a·ra·ble /'sepərəbəl/ adj [(from)] fml that can be separated
→ opposite INSEPARABLE →bly adv →bility /,sepərə'bɪlʒti/ [U]
sep·a·rate¹ /'sepəreɪt/ v 1 [I;T(from)] to move apart; (cause to) become disconnected physically or in the mind: Once the spacecraft was in orbit, the satellite separated from its launcher. | The two friends separated at the crossroads. | He found the two boys fighting and stepped in to separate them. | They were great friends and couldn't be separated. (=were always together) | As we joined the big crowd I got separated from my friends. | They were once very close (=good friends) but their opposing political views have separated them. | In any discussion of the matter, the two issues must be clearly separated. (=recognized as different) 2 [T(off) often pass.] to keep apart; mark a division between: The two parts of the town were separated by a river. | A partition separated the rooms. 3 [I;T(up, into, from)] to break or divide up into the parts forming the whole: An orange separates (up) into ten or twelve pieces. | War separated the family. | The teacher separated the children into two groups. | Break the eggs and separate the whites from the yolks. 4 [I] to stop living together as husband and wife, especially by a formal agreement 5 [I;T(out, from)] to (cause to) leave a mixture and form a mass by itself: If you heat the sauce too much, the butter will separate out.
sep•a•rate² /'seprət/ adj 1 not the same; different: This word has three separate meanings. | The restaurant and the bar in this establishment are under separate management. | She's been warned on three separate occasions that the standard of her work is not good enough. 2 [A] not shared with another; INDIVIDUAL: We have separate rooms. | We went our separate ways (=went in different directions) after the party. 3 [F (from)] apart: Keep the onions separate from the bread or they'll make it smell. —ly adv: They arrived together but left separately. | Each problem should be assessed separately. | The American hostages were held separately from the rest.
separate but 'equal adj describing the practice of separating African Americans and white Americans and giving them (supposedly) equal services, such as schools, houses, hotels, seats on buses and trains, and restaurants. This was legal in the US from 1896 until 1954, when the Supreme Court decided that African Americans could not be forced to go to separate schools from white Americans. → see also BROWN V. BOARD OF EDUCATION OF TOPEKA, CIVIL RIGHTS, PLESSEY V FERGUSON, SEGREGATION
sep·a·rates /'seperəts/ also coordinates n [P] separate women's garments that can be worn together in various combinations, such as a shirt and skirt or a coat and trousers
sep·a·ra·tion /,sepə'reɪʃən/ n 1 [U(of)] the act of separating or the fact of being separated: arrangements for the separation of rival supporters at a football match | the separation of church and state 2 [C;U(from)] (a time of) being or living apart: Lengthy separation of the boy from his mother could lead to psychological problems. 3 [C] law a formal agreement by a husband and wife to live apart → compare DIVORCE; see also TRIAL SEPARATION
separation of church and 'state n [U] the belief or law that the church should not be involved in governing a country, and that the state should not be allowed to govern religion. This belief is strong in the US, where, for example, prayer is generally not allowed in public schools.
sep·a·rat·is·m /'sepərətizəm/ n [U] the belief that a particular political or religious group or unit should be separate, and not part of a larger whole —ist n: Sikh separatists in India, who want to form an independent state
separation of 'powers also balance of powers, checks and balance system n [U] the practice of controlling a government's power by dividing it into three branches: LEGISLATIVE (=the power to make laws), JUDICIARY (=the power to judge), and EXECUTIVE (=the power to give orders). The American CONSTITUTION is based upon this system.
sep•a•ra•tor /'sepəreitər/ n a machine for separating especially liquids from solids or cream from milk
se·pi·a /'si:piə/ n [U] 1 a reddish-brown paint or ink made from liquid produced by CUTTLEFISH: a sepia drawing (=one made with this) 2 the colour of this: an old-fashioned sepia photograph
sep·sis /'sepsəs/ n [U] med a poisoning of part of the body by disease bacteria, often producing PUS (=a poisonous yellowish substance) there
September /sep'tember/ written abbrev. Sept. n [C, U] 1 the ninth month of the year, between August and October. In the UK and northern US, September is the end of summer and the beginning of autumn, when days get shorter and the weather gets colder. It is traditionally thought of as HARVEST TIME, when the farmers gather crops. It is also the month when children go back to school after the long summer holiday: in September The project is due to finish in September. | last/next September We haven't seen each other since last September. | on September 6th The meeting will be on September 6th. | on (the) 6th September BrE 'When are you going?' 'On the 6th September.' | September 6th AmE They arrive September 6th. 2 thirty days hath September an old poem which people use to remind themselves of how many days each different month has
Sep'tember Dossier, the an official document published by the British government in September 2002, claiming that Iraq had obtained quantities of URANIUM and had Weapons of Mass Destruction (=chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons) that could be ready for use in 45 minutes. A BBC reporter said that a government expert had told him the 45 minute claim was not really true. The expert, Dr David Kelly, was named in many newspapers and was in serious trouble with his employers, the Ministry of Defence, for talking to a journalist. He was questioned by MPs in the House of Commons, and shortly afterwards he killed himself.
September 11 /səp,tembər i'levən/ 11 September 2001, the day TERRORISTS HIJACKed four planes and used them to attack New York and Washington, D.C. The terrorists flew two of the planes into the two towers of the World Trade Center and a third plane into the Pentagon. The towers and most of the World Trade Center were destroyed during the attack, and part of the Pentagon was destroyed by fire. The fourth plane crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. It is believed that some of the passengers and CREW (=the people who were working on the plane) on this plane decided to try to stop the terrorists by fighting them, and that this caused the plane to crash. The plane was travelling towards Washington, D.C., probably to attack the Capitol building or the White House. Nearly 3,000 people were killed in the attacks, including passengers and crew on the planes, people inside the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, police, FIREFIGHTERS, and the terrorists. The US government blamed the extreme Islamic group al-Qaeda for the attacks, and later that year it INVADED Afghanistan, where it believed many of al-Qaeda's leaders, such as Osama bin Laden, were hiding.
sep·tet /sep'tet/ n 1 [+sing./pl. v.] a group of seven singers or musicians performing together 2 a piece of music for seven performers → compare OCTET, SEXTET
sep·tic /'septik/ adj especially BrE infected with disease bacteria: a septic finger
sep·ti·cae·mi·a especially BrE ‖ -cemia AmE /,sept 13'si:mia/ n [U] tech for BLOOD POISONING
'septic tank n a large container, especially near buildings in country areas, into which body waste matter is carried by pipes to be treated chemically
septu-age-nar-i-an /,septfuad3a'nearien/ n a person
who is between 70 and 79 years old
Sep.tu.a.ges.i.ma /,sept.fua'dzes'ma/ in the Christian religion, the third Sunday before LENT
se·pul·chral /sɪˈpʌlkrəl/ adj 1 fml or fit like or suitable for a grave; the sepulchral gloom of the crypt | (fig.) a sepulchral voice (=deep and frightening) 2 tech of the burial of the dead