seat

noun

/siːt/

Idioms

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place to sit

enlarge image

a place where you can sit, for example a chair

She sat back in her seat.
He put his shopping on the seat behind him.
Please take a seat (= sit down).
Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats (= sit down).
the front/passenger seat (= in a car)
the back/rear seats
a child seat (= for a child in a car)
a window/an aisle seat (= on a plane or train)
a window/corner seat (= one near a window/in a corner)
a car/toilet seat
We used the branch of an old tree as a seat.
We all filed back to our seats in silence.

Synonyms sitsit

sit down
be seated
take a seat
perch

These words all mean to rest your weight on your bottom with your back straight, for example on a chair.

sit
to rest your weight on your bottom with your back straight, for example on a chair:
- May I sit here?
- Sit still, will you!
Sit is usually used with an adverb or prepositional phrase to show where or how somebody sits, but sometimes another phrase or clause is used to show what somebody does while they are sitting: We sat talking for hours.
sit down/sit yourself down
to move from a standing position to a sitting position:
- Please sit down.
- Come in and sit yourselves down.
be seated
(formal) to be sitting:
- She was seated at the head of the table.
Be seated is often used as a formal way of inviting somebody to sit down: Please be seated.
take a seat to sit down Take a seat is used especially as a polite way of inviting somebody to sit down: Please take a seat.
perch
(rather informal) to sit on something, especially on the edge of something:
- She perched herself on the edge of the bed.
Perch is always used with an adverb or prepositional phrase to show where somebody is perching.

Patterns

to sit/sit down/be seated/take a seat/perch on something
to sit/sit down/be seated/take a seat in something

see also back seat, booster seat, box seat, bucket seat, car seat, ejector seat, hot seat, love seat, passenger seat, window seat

Extra Examples

Do you have a spare seat in your car?
He gave up his seat on the bus to a pregnant woman.
He leaped out of his seat when he saw the rat.
I got to the concert early to get a good seat.
I had a terrifying journey on the pillion seat of a Honda 750.
I slid into the leather bucket seat and fastened my seat belt.
I took my usual seat at the front of the classroom.
Is this seat taken?
It is very uncomfortable to sit on these seats.
The audience resumed their seats for the second half of the play.
The best seats were occupied by the friends and families of the performers.
There were no empty seats left in the hall.
We had hardly settled into our seats when the first goal was scored.
We had ringside seats for the boxing match.
We had the best seats in the house for the concert.
Would you prefer a window seat or an aisle seat?

Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective

available
empty
spare
…

verb + seat

find
get
grab
…

seat + noun

cover
cushion
reservation
…

preposition

in a/the seat
on a/the seat
out of a/the seat
…

phrases

the best seat in the house
lean back in your seat
settle back in your seat
…

See full entry

-seater

(in nouns and adjectives) with the number of seats mentioned

(British English) a ten-seater minibus
an all-seater stadium (= in which nobody is allowed to stand)

part of chair

the part of a chair, etc. on which you actually sit

a steel chair with a plastic seat

Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective

available
empty
spare
…

verb + seat

find
get
grab
…

seat + noun

cover
cushion
reservation
…

preposition

in a/the seat
on a/the seat
out of a/the seat
…

phrases

the best seat in the house
lean back in your seat
settle back in your seat
…

See full entry

in plane/train/theatre

a place where you pay to sit in a plane, train, theatre, etc.

Call the theatre box office to book your seats.
To reserve a seat, visit our website.
There are no seats left on that flight.
Airlines often give great deals to fill empty seats.
seat for something We had excellent seats for the show, on the third row.

Extra Examples

I reserved seats for a performance of ‘King Lear’ at the New Theatre.
an electronic seat-reservation system
Seat reservations are free.
Not all theatres can fill their seats so easily.
Is it possible to book seats for the play?
I managed to get some seats for the ballet.

Topics Transport by bus and traina2, Transport by aira2

Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective

available
empty
spare
…

verb + seat

find
get
grab
…

seat + noun

cover
cushion
reservation
…

preposition

in a/the seat
on a/the seat
out of a/the seat
…

phrases

the best seat in the house
lean back in your seat
settle back in your seat
…

See full entry

official position

an official position as a member of a parliament, council, committee, etc.

a seat on the city council/in Parliament/in Congress
Republicans currently hold 51 seats in the Senate.
The majority of seats on the board will be held by business representatives.
The party won 32 seats in the recent elections.
Several ministers are in danger of losing their seats.
(British English) to take your seat (= to begin your duties, especially in Parliament)
One vote could make all the difference in the highly marginal seat of Crawley.

town/city

seat of something (formal) a place where people are involved in a particular activity, especially a city that has a university or the offices of a government

Washington is the seat of government of the US.
a university town renowned as a seat of learning

country house

(also country seat)

(British English) a large house in the country that belongs to a member of the upper class

For the first two years of her life she lived at Ickworth, the family seat in Sussex.

part of body

(especially formal) the part of the body on which a person sits synonym bottom (6)

part of trousers/pants

the part of a pair of trousers that covers a person’s seat

Word OriginMiddle English (as a noun): from Old Norse sæti, from the Germanic base of sit. The verb dates from the late 16th cent.

Idioms

be in the catbird seat

to have an advantage over other people or be in control of a situation
- Canada is in the catbird seat as an energy powerhouse.

be in the driving seat (British English)

(North American English be in the driver’s seat)

to be the person in control of a situation

bums on seats

(British English, informal) used to refer to the number of people who attend a show, talk, etc., especially when emphasizing the need or desire to attract a large number
- They're not bothered about attracting the right audience—they just want bums on seats.

(fly) by the seat of your pants

(informal) to act without careful thought and without a plan that you have made in advance, hoping that you will be lucky and be successful synonym wing it

on the edge of your seat

very excited and giving your full attention to something
- The game had the crowd on the edge of their seats.
- I was on the edge of my seat waiting to find out what happened next.

take a back seat

to allow somebody else to play a more active and important role in a particular situation than you do
- Many managers take a back seat and leave recruitment to specialists.

seat

verb

/siːt/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they seat	/siːt/ /siːt/
he / she / it seats	/siːts/ /siːts/
past simple seated	/ˈsiːtɪd/ /ˈsiːtɪd/
past participle seated	/ˈsiːtɪd/ /ˈsiːtɪd/
-ing form seating	/ˈsiːtɪŋ/ /ˈsiːtɪŋ/

jump to other results

sit down

seat somebody/yourself (formal) to give somebody a place to sit; to sit down in a place

Please wait to be seated (= in a restaurant, etc.).
Please be seated (= sit down).
He seated himself behind the desk.
She was wondering where to seat her guests.
I found myself seated next to her.

Synonyms sitsit

sit down
be seated
take a seat
perch

These words all mean to rest your weight on your bottom with your back straight, for example on a chair.

sit
to rest your weight on your bottom with your back straight, for example on a chair:
- May I sit here?
- Sit still, will you!
Sit is usually used with an adverb or prepositional phrase to show where or how somebody sits, but sometimes another phrase or clause is used to show what somebody does while they are sitting: We sat talking for hours.
sit down/sit yourself down
to move from a standing position to a sitting position:
- Please sit down.
- Come in and sit yourselves down.
be seated
(formal) to be sitting:
- She was seated at the head of the table.
Be seated is often used as a formal way of inviting somebody to sit down: Please be seated.
take a seat to sit down Take a seat is used especially as a polite way of inviting somebody to sit down: Please take a seat.
perch
(rather informal) to sit on something, especially on the edge of something:
- She perched herself on the edge of the bed.
Perch is always used with an adverb or prepositional phrase to show where somebody is perching.

Patterns

to sit/sit down/be seated/take a seat/perch on something
to sit/sit down/be seated/take a seat in something

Extra Examples

Please remain seated until your name is called.
Ramirez was seated at a table near the window.
The old woman was seated in a chair.
She seated herself on the sofa.

Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb

comfortably

preposition

phrases

be seated
be seated cross-legged
remain seated
…

See full entry

of building/vehicle

seat somebody to have enough seats for a particular number of people

The aircraft seats 200 passengers.
The auditorium can seat an audience of 5 000.
The car seats six comfortably.

Word OriginMiddle English (as a noun): from Old Norse sæti, from the Germanic base of sit. The verb dates from the late 16th cent.