1247
secondary modern
sea-son-ing /'si:zənɪŋ/ n [C;U] something that seasons food
'season ,ticket /ˌiː... ˈt.../ also season inſml — n a ticket for a
number of journeys, performances etc during a particular
period, sold at a lower price than you would have to pay
altogether if you paid for each journey etc separately →
compare COMMUTATION TICKET
seat¹ /si:t/ n 1 a place for sitting: What can we use for seats? |
He sat down on/in the nearest available seat. | She got into/sat
in the front/back seat of the car. | We reserved seats on the
train. | Have you booked our theatre seats? | The show is about
to start, ladies and gentlemen, so please take your seats. (=sit
down) | Please come in and have/take a seat. | a 150-seat
airliner 2 [C usually sing.] the part on which one sits: He had
grass stains on the seat of his trousers. | Don't put your feet on
the seat of the chair. | My seat's rather sore from horse
riding! 3 a place as a member of an official or controlling
body: She won a seat/lost her seat in Parliament at the
election. | Her ambition is a seat on the company's main
board. | a safe Labour seat. 4 [(off)] fml a place where a
particular activity happens; CENTRE: Oxford and Cambridge
are England's most famous seats of learning. | London is the
British seat of government. 5 tech a way of sitting on a
horse: She's got a good seat. (=rides well) 6 by the seat of
one's pants inſml guided by one's experience rather than by
machines, help from others, a formal plan etc: With all her
navigational equipment broken, she was flying by the seat of
her pants. 7 in the driving seat (BrE) || in the driver's seat (
AmE) in control 8 -seater /si:tə/ something with the stated
number of seats or places to sit: My little car's just a
two-seater. | a three-seater sofa → see also BACK SEAT, HOT
SEAT
seat² v [T] 1 [often pass.] to cause or help to sit: I glanced at
the man seated next to me. (=the man who was sitting next to
me) | {fml} Please be seated. (=sit down) 2 [not in progressive
forms] (of a room, table etc) to have room for seats for (a
certain number of people): The hall seats/will seat 200. →
see also SEATING 3 to fit (especially a machine part) into a
hole or close fitting place: Make sure the washer is firmly
seated before tightening the pipe. → see also UNSEAT; see SIT
(USAGE)
'seat belt also safety belt n a belt fastened round a seated
person in a car, plane etc, to protect them from sudden
movement → see picture at CAR
CULTURAL NOTE In Britain, a seat belt must always be
worn by the driver of a car and any passenger in the front
seat. They must also be worn by passengers in the back
seat if they have been fitted in the car. In the US, seat belt
laws vary from state to state.
seat-ing /'si:tɪŋ/ n [U] (a way of arranging) seats: a seating
plan for the dinner guests | the seating capacity of the hall
(=the number of people who can sit in it)
Se-at-tle /si'ætl/ a city and port in Washington State, in the
northwest of the US. It is an important business centre, and is
the place where Microsoft has its HEADQUARTERS. It is known
for having a lot of rain, and as a place where you can drink
very good coffee.
seat-work /'si:twɜːk|l-wɜːrk/ n [U] AmE work, especially
written work, done by children at their desks at school
without help from their teacher
'sea ,urchin n a small ball-shaped sea animal that has a hard
shell with many sharp points → see picture at SEA
sea-wall /ˌsi'wɔl|l-si'wɔːl/ n a wall built along the edge of
the sea to keep it from flowing over an area of land
sea-ward /'si:wɜːd|-wɜːrd/ adj 1 facing or directed towards
the sea 2 coming in off the sea: a seaward wind
sea-wards /'si:wɜːdz|l-wɜːrdz/ also seaward adv towards
the sea
sea-way /'si:weɪ/ n 1 a course commonly followed by ships
on the sea 2 a river or similar stretch of deep water,
allowing ocean ships to travel far inside land
sea-weed /'si:wi:d/ n [U] a plant that grows in the sea;
some seaweed is used for food → see also LAVER and see
picture at SEA
sea-wor-thy /'si:wɜːðiːl-ɜːr-/ adj (of a ship) in proper and
safe condition; fit for a sea voyage —thiness n [U]
se-bum /'si:bəm/ n fatty matter which comes out from
under the skin to oil the hair and skin
sec¹ /sek/ n inſml for SECOND: Just hang on/wait a sec, will you?
sec² abbrev. for SECRETARY
SEC /ˌes iː 'siː/ abbrev. for SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMIS-
SION
sec-a-teurs /'sekəːtɜːz|ˌsekə'tɜːrz/ n [P] BrE strong scissors
for cutting bits off garden plants → see PAIR (USAGE)
se-cede /sɪ'siːd/ v [(from)] fml to formally leave a group or
organization, especially because of disagreement: One of the
states has seceded from the federation.
se-ces-sion /sɪ'seʃən/ n [U] formal separation from a group
or organization: The secession of some southern states from
the USA in the 1860s led to a civil war. —ist n
se-clude /sɪ'kluːd/ v [T(in)] fml to keep (especially oneself)
away from other people
se-clud-ed /sɪ'kluːdɪd/ adj very quiet and private: a secluded
country house | a secluded life
se-clu-sion /sɪ'kluːʒən/ n [U] 1 the state of being secluded;
quietness and privateness: He lives in almost total seclusion
these days. 2 [(off)] the act of secluding: In some countries the
seclusion of women (=keeping them away from men) is still
the custom.
sec-ond¹ /'sekənd/ determiner, adv, pron 2nd: That's the second
time you've asked me that. | the Second World War | They're
rich enough to own a second car. (=they have 2 cars) | a
second-year student at university | Bill only finished second/in
second place in the race. | He was/came a poor second. (=a long
way behind the first person) | They hold elections every
second year. (=one year out of every two) | I hear she's had
another baby. Is that her second or her third? | the second of a
series of programmes on Russia | First, what happened?
Second, why? | the second-largest car manufacturer in the
country | As car manufacturers they are second only to
Nissan in size. | As a footballer he is second to none. (=the
best) | He was the second oldest child. (=there was only one
older than him) → see TABLE 1; see FIRSTLY (USAGE)
second² n 1 a length of time equal to 1/60 of a minute: His
time for the 100 metre sprint was 10.2 seconds. | The seconds
ticked by. 2 tech a measure of an angle equal to 1/3600 of a
degree, or 1/60 of a MINUTE 3 [C usually sing.] a moment: I'll be
back in a second. | Have you got a second? (=I want to talk to
you) → see also SPLIT SECOND
second³ n 1 a person who helps someone who is fighting in
a BOXING match or DUEL 2 [usually pl.] inſml a damaged or
imperfect article for sale at a lower price: If you want to buy
dishes cheaply, you ought to get factory seconds. 3 [(in)] the
next-to-highest class of British university degree: a second in
history → see also TWO-ONE, TWO-TWO; see Cultural Note at
DEGREE
second⁴ v [T] to support formally (a formal suggestion made
at a meeting), so that argument or voting can follow: 'Will
anyone second this motion?' 'I second it, Mr Chairman.' —er
n: Is there a seconder for that motion?
se-cond⁵ /sɪ'kɒnd|iː'kɑːnd/ v [T(from, to) usually pass.] BrE fml to
move (someone) from their usual duties to a special duty,
usually for a limited time: I've been seconded to the accounts
department while they're short of staff. —ment n [C;U] She
is on secondment to the accounts department at the moment.
,Second 'Advent, the n SECOND COMING
sec-ond-a-ry /'sekəndəri|-deri/ adj 1 (of education, a
teacher etc) for children from the age of 11 or 12 up to the
age of 16 or 18 → compare PRIMARY 2 [(to)] not so impor-
tant, valuable etc, as the main one(s): In addition to the main
question, there are various secondary matters to talk about. |
All other considerations are secondary to his safety. 3 tech
later than, developing from, taken from etc, something
earlier or original: a secondary infection brought on by a cold
—rily /'sekəndərɪli|sekən'derli/ adv
,secondary 'colour n a colour made by mixing two PRIMARY
COLOURS (=red, yellow, or blue)
,secondary 'modern also ,secondary 'modern
,school n (in Britain, especially formerly) a school for chil-
dren over the age of 11 who are not expected to go on to