chair

Noun

1. An item of furniture used to sit on or in, comprising a seat, legs or wheels, back, and sometimes arm rests, for use by one person.
2. (abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, often, with-definite-article) Clipping of chairperson.
3. (usually, with-definite-article) The post or position of chairperson.
4. The seating position of a particular musician in an orchestra.
5. A cast-iron component used on railways to support bullhead rails and secure them to the sleepers.
6. (physical) One of two possible conformers of cyclohexane rings (the other being boat), shaped roughly like a chair.
7. (abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis, informal) Ellipsis of electric chair (“device used for performing execution”).
8. A distinguished professorship at a university.
9. A vehicle for one person; either a sedan borne upon poles, or a two-wheeled carriage drawn by one horse; a gig.
10. The seat or office of a person in authority, such as a judge or bishop.
11. An assigned position in a beauty salon or barbershop.

Verb

1. (transitive) To act as chairperson at; to preside over.
2. (transitive) To carry in a seated position upon one's shoulders, especially in celebration or victory.
3. (UK, Wales, transitive) To award a chair to (a winning poet) at a Welsh eisteddfod.

Pronounced as (IPA)

/t͡ʃɛə(ɹ)/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: chayer

In summary

From Middle English chayer, chaire, chaiere, chaere, chayre, chayere, from Old French chaiere, chaere, from Latin cathedra (“seat”), from Ancient Greek καθέδρα (kathédra), from κατά (katá, “down”) + ἕδρα (hédra, “seat”). Displaced native stool and settle, which now have more specialised senses. Doublet of cathedra and chaise.

Synonyms

seat

💺

stool

bench

chairman

chairperson

preside

lead

president

professorship

chairwoman

moderate

armchair

chairmanship

couch

🛋️

electric chair

death chair

sofa

🛋️

hot seat

throne

mat

head

place

headship

bed

🛏️

speaker

🔈

form

saddle

pedestal

presidency

lectureship

chairs

lift up

divan

direct

derive

davenport

cradle

course

carrier

job

holder

convey

carriage

bank

🏦

constituency

guide

gudgeon

infer

console

call the shots

Translations

chaise

🪑

silla

🪑

Stuhl

🪑

sedia

🪑

stoel

🪑

cadeira

🪑

καρέκλα

krzesło

siège

💺

cadira

🪑

asiento

💺

zetel

🪑

sandalye

🪑

sella

💺

Vorsitz

🪑

Sentences

The plush chair leaned against the wall .

Kravchuk held a mathematics chair at the Kiev Polytechnic Institute .

Walter Fernandez , Junior leads the magazine's team , with publications committee chair Edgar Burcksen.