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Definition of siege noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

siege

noun
 
/siːdʒ/
 
/siːdʒ/
Idioms
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  1. a military operation in which an army tries to capture a town by surrounding it and stopping the supply of food, etc. to the people inside
    • the siege of Troy
    • The siege was finally lifted (= ended) after six months.
    • The police placed the city centre under a virtual state of siege (= it was hard to get in or out).
    Extra Examples
    • The royal forces marched south to lift the siege of Donnington Castle.
    • This fortress could withstand a siege for years if necessary.
    • The siege lasted two years.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • lengthy
    • long
    • prolonged
    • …
    verb + siege
    • lay
    • break
    • end
    • …
    siege + verb
    • last
    • begin
    • end
    • …
    siege + noun
    • warfare
    • engine
    • tower
    • …
    preposition
    • at a/​the siege
    • during a/​the siege
    • under siege
    • …
    phrases
    • a state of siege
    See full entry
  2. a situation in which the police surround a building where people are living or hiding, in order to make them come out
    • The siege was finally brought to an end when the terrorists surrendered.
    see also besiege
    Extra Examples
    • The seven-hour armed siege at the school ended peacefully.
    • The terrorists were shot dead during the siege of the embassy.
    Topics Law and justicec2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • lengthy
    • long
    • prolonged
    • …
    verb + siege
    • lay
    • break
    • end
    • …
    siege + verb
    • last
    • begin
    • end
    • …
    siege + noun
    • warfare
    • engine
    • tower
    • …
    preposition
    • at a/​the siege
    • during a/​the siege
    • under siege
    • …
    phrases
    • a state of siege
    See full entry
    3. Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French sege, from asegier ‘besiege’.
Idioms
lay siege to something
  1. to begin a siege of a town, building, etc.
    • The crusaders laid siege to Lisbon.
    • The English forces laid siege to the city of Tournai.
  2. to surround a building, especially in order to speak to or question the person or people living or working there
    • Crowds of journalists laid siege to the star’s apartment.
under siege
  1. surrounded by an army or the police in a siege
    • The city was under siege for six months.
    • At the very end of the war, Prague again came under siege.
  2. being criticized all the time or put under pressure by problems, questions, etc.
    • The government is already under siege for its economic policy.
    • Under military and economic siege, entire economic sectors have collapsed.
See siege in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
Check pronunciation: siege

Nearby words

hopefully
adverb
 
 
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