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

chair

noun
 
 
/tʃeə(r)/
 
/tʃer/
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  1.  
     [countable] a piece of furniture for one person to sit on, with a back, a seat and four legs
    • a table and chairs
    • on a chair Sit on your chair!
    • in a chair an old man asleep in a chair (= an armchair)
    • She was sitting in her favourite chair.
    • He sighed and leaned back in his chair.
    • ‘Sit down,’ she said, pointing to the empty chair next to her.
    • a comfortable chair
    • a wooden/leather/plastic chair
    • a folding/reclining/swivel chair
    • an office/a desk chair
    see also armchair, bath chair, deckchair, director’s chair, easy chair, electric chair, high chair, lawn chair, lounge chair, musical chairs, rocking chair, sedan chair, wheelchair, wing chair
    Extra Examples
    • ‘Please, be my guest.’ He gestured towards an empty chair.
    • A cat was asleep on the chair.
    • His tall figure was slumped in his chair.
    • Rising slowly from his chair he went to a bookcase.
    • A chair stood facing the window.
    • Come in and take a chair (= sit down).
    • She gave me her chair.
    • She got up from her chair to address the meeting.
    • He lay back in the reclining chair and went to sleep.
    • I gestured to an empty chair.
    • He pulled out a chair for me.
    • She pushed back her chair and got to her feet.
    • He put his feet up on the desk and lay back in his chair.
    • She sank into her chair and opened the letter.
    • He sat nervously on the edge of his chair.
    • She was shifting about uneasily in her chair.
    • Lisa heard a chair scraping the floor.
    • a set of antique dining chairs
    • a dining table and four matching chairs
    • They straightened in their chairs when the manager burst in.
    • The chair creaked every time I moved.
    • She tipped her chair back and fixed her gaze full upon him.
    • I swivelled round in my chair and picked up my phone.
    • She leaned back in her chair and yawned.
    • He gripped the arm of his chair as she spoke.
    • I dropped my bags and flopped down into the nearest chair.
    • She returned to the swivel chair (= one on which the seat turns around without moving the base) behind her desk.
    • He always swivels around in his chair.
    • dining/​kitchen chairs
    Topics Houses and homesa1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • comfortable
    • comfy
    • cushioned
    • …
    … of chairs
    • row
    • set
    verb + chair
    • draw up
    • pull up
    • pull out
    • …
    chair + verb
    • be placed
    • stand
    • swivel
    • …
    chair + noun
    • arm
    • back
    • leg
    • …
    preposition
    • into a/​the chair
    • in a/​the chair
    • on a/​the chair
    • …
    phrases
    • the arm of a chair
    • the back of a chair
    • the edge of a chair
    • …
    See full entry
  2.  
    the chair
    [countable, usually singular] the position of being in charge of a meeting or committee; the person who holds this position
    • in the chair Who is in the chair today?
    • All remarks should be addressed to the chair.
    • She takes the chair in all our meetings.
    • chair of something the chair of the committee
    • He was elected chair of the city council.
    • The chairs of all the subcommittees will meet on Friday.
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    Extra Examples
    • Anne took the chair in Carol's absence.
    • Paul Ryan was in the chair at today's meeting.
    • Please address your questions to the chair.
    Topics Working lifeb2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • acting
    • deputy
    • honorary
    • …
    verb + chair
    • occupy
    • take
    • address (something to)
    • …
    preposition
    • in the chair
    See full entry
  3. [countable] the position of being in charge of a department in a university; a special position as a university professor
    • He holds the chair of philosophy at Oxford.
    • the department chair
    • She was awarded a personal chair in black history at Bath Spa University (= she was made a professor without being head of a department).
    Extra Examples
    • She held the Chair of Psychology at Yale.
    • He held the Chair of Botany at Cambridge University for thirty years.
    • A private benefactor endowed the new Chair of Japanese Literature.
    Topics Educationc1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • professorial
    verb + chair
    • hold
    • occupy
    • appoint somebody to
    • …
    See full entry
  4. the chair
     (US English, informal)
    (also electric chair British and North American English)
    [singular] (especially in the US) a chair in which criminals are killed by having a powerful electric current passed through their bodies; the method of execution that uses this chair
    5. Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French chaiere (modern chaire ‘bishop's throne, etc.’, chaise ‘chair’), from Latin cathedra ‘seat’, from Greek kathedra. Compare with cathedral.
See chair in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee chair in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
Check pronunciation: chair

Nearby words

trait
noun
 
 
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