sit (sits 3rd person present) (sitting present participle) (sat past tense & past participle )
1 verb If you are sitting somewhere, for example in a chair, your bottom is resting on the chair and the upper part of your body is upright.
Mother was sitting in her chair in the kitchen... V prep/adv
They sat there in shock and disbelief... V prep/adv
They had been sitting watching television... V
He was unable to sit still for longer than a few minutes. V adj, Also V
2 verb When you sit somewhere, you lower your body until you are sitting on something.
He set the cases against a wall and sat on them... V prep/adv
When you stand, they stand; when you sit, they sit. V
Sit down means the same as sit., phrasal verb
I sat down, stunned... V P
Hughes beckoned him to sit down on the sofa. V P prep/adv
3 verb If you sit someone somewhere, you tell them to sit there or put them in a sitting position.
He used to sit me on his lap... V n prep/adv
To sit someone down somewhere means to sit them there., phrasal verb
She helped him out of the water and sat him down on the rock... V n P prep/adv
They sat me down and had a serious discussion about sex. V n P
4 verb If you sit an examination, you do it.
(BRIT)
(=take)
June and July are the traditional months for sitting exams. V n
in AM, use take
5 verb If you siton a committee or other official group, you are a member of it.
no cont
He was asked to sit on numerous committees... V on/in n
6 verb When a parliament, legislature, court, or other official body sits, it officially carries out its work.
FORMAL Parliament sits for only 28 weeks out of 52... V
7 verb If a building or object sits in a particular place, it is in that place.
WRITTEN
(=stand)
Our new house sat next to a stream... V prep/adv
On the table sat a box decorated with little pearl triangles. V prep/adv
9 If you sit tight, you remain in the same place or situation and do not take any action, usually because you are waiting for something to happen.
sit tight phrase V inflects
Sit tight. I'll be right back...
→
to sit on the fence
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fence sit around phrasal verb
in BRIT, also use sit about If you sit around or sit about, you spend time doing nothing useful or interesting.
INFORMAL Eve isn't the type to sit around doing nothing... V P sit back phrasal verb If you sit back while something is happening, you relax and do not become involved in it.
INFORMAL They didn't have to do anything except sit back and enjoy life... V P sit by phrasal verb If you sit by while something wrong or illegal is happening, you allow it to happen and do not do anything about it.
(=stand by)
We can't just sit by and watch you throw your life away... V P sit down
2 phrasal verb If you sit down and do something, you spend time and effort doing it in order to try to achieve something.
Have you both sat down and worked out a budget together?... V P
3
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sit-down sit in on phrasal verb If you sit in on a lesson, meeting, or discussion, you are present while it is taking place but do not take part in it.
Will they permit you to sit in on a few classes?... V P P n sit on phrasal verb If you say that someone is sitting on something, you mean that they are delaying dealing with it.
INFORMAL He had been sitting on the document for at least two months. V P n sit out phrasal verb If you sit something out, you wait for it to finish, without taking any action.
The only thing I can do is keep quiet and sit this one out... V n P
He can afford to sit out the property slump. V P n (not pron) sit through phrasal verb If you sit through something such as a film, lecture, or meeting, you stay until it is finished although you are not enjoying it.
...movies so bad you can hardly bear to sit through them. V P n sit up
1 phrasal verb If you sit up, you move into a sitting position when you have been leaning back or lying down.
Her head spins dizzily as soon as she sits up. V P
2 phrasal verb If you sit someone up, you move them into a sitting position when they have been leaning back or lying down.
She sat him up and made him comfortable. V n P
3 phrasal verb If you sit up, you do not go to bed although it is very late.
(=stay up)
We sat up drinking and talking... V P
sit-down
1 n-sing If you have a sit-down, you sit down and rest for a short time.
(BRIT)
INFORMAL a N
All he wanted was a cup of tea and a sit-down.
2 adj A sit-down meal is served to people sitting at tables.
ADJ n
A sit-down dinner was followed by a disco.
3 adj In a sit-down protest, people refuse to leave a place until they get what they want.
ADJ n
Teachers staged a sit-down protest in front of the president's office.
sit-in (sit-ins plural )A sit-in is a protest in which people go to a public place and stay there for a long time. (BUSINESS) n-count
The campaigners held a sit-in outside the Supreme Court.
sit-up (sit-ups plural )
in AM, also use situp Sit-ups are exercises that you do to strengthen your stomach muscles. They involve sitting up from a lying position while keeping your legs straight on the floor. n-count usu pl
