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chair

Pronunciation: /t͡ʃɛə/

The English word “chair” has 12 meanings listed here.

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. The post or position of chairperson.
  3. The seating position of a particular musician in an orchestra.
  4. A cast-iron component used on railways to support bullhead rails and secure them to the sleepers.
  5. One of two possible conformers of cyclohexane rings (the other being boat), shaped roughly like a chair.
  6. A distinguished professorship at a university.
  7. A vehicle for one person; either a sedan borne upon poles, or a two-wheeled carriage drawn by one horse; a gig.
  8. The seat or office of a person in authority, such as a judge or bishop.
  9. An assigned position in a beauty salon or barbershop.

verb

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

Etymology

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

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.