n.
Pronunciation: ' s ē t
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English sete, from Old Norse sæti; akin to Old English gesete seat, sittan to sit
Date: 13th century
1 a : a special chair of one in eminence also : the status represented by it b : a chair, stool, or bench intended to be sat in or on c : the particular part of something on which one rests in sitting <the seat of a chair> <trouser seat > d : BUTTOCKS
2 a : a seating accommodation <a seat for the game> <a 200- seat restaurant> b : a right of sitting <lost his seat in Congress> c : membership on an exchange
3 a : a place where something specified is prevalent : CENTER <a seat of learning> b : a place from which authority is exercised <the county seat > c : a bodily part in which some function or condition is centered <the brain as the seat of the mind>
4 : posture in or way of sitting on horseback
5 a : a part at or forming the base of something b : a part (as a socket) or surface on or in which another part or surface rests
– by the seat of one's pants : using experience and intuition rather than mechanical aids or formal theory