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second1 definition

sec·ond (sek′ənd)

adjective

  1. coming next after the first in order of place or time; 2d or 2nd
  2. another; other; additional; supplementary to take a second helping
  3. being of the same kind as another; resembling a given original a second Shakespeare
  4. alternate; other every second day
  5. next below the first in rank, power, value, merit, excellence, etc.
  6. inferior; subordinate; secondary
  7. Music
    1. lower in pitch
    2. playing or singing a part that is lower in pitch

Etymology: ME secunde < OFr < L secundus, following, second < sequi, to follow: see sequent

noun

  1. the next after the first
  2. any person, thing, class, place, etc. that is second
  3. an article of merchandise that falls below the standard set for first quality
    1. a kind of coarse flour
    2. bread made from this
  5. an aide or official assistant, esp. to one of the principals in a duel or boxing match
  6. the second forward gear of a transmission: it provides more speed but less torque than first
  7. the act or an instance of seconding
  8. a second helping of something to eat
  9. ☆ Baseball second base
  10. Music
    1. the second tone of an ascending diatonic scale, or a tone one degree above or below any given tone in such a scale
    2. the interval between two such tones, or a combination of them
    3. the second part in a harmonized composition, esp. the alto
    4. an instrument or voice taking this part

transitive verb

  1. to act as an aide or second to; aid; assist
  2. to give support or encouragement to; further; reinforce
  3. to indicate formally one's approval or support of (a motion, nomination, etc.) as a necessary preliminary to discussion of or a vote on it

adverb

  1. in the second place, rank, group, etc.
  2. next to or next after the second last row

Related Forms:

second2 definition

se·cond (si känd′)

transitive verb

  1. to transfer (a military officer) from regular service to special service, civil or military
  2. to transfer (an official, employee, etc.) to a temporary assignment

Etymology: < Fr en second, in second position

Related Forms:

second3 definition

sec·ond (sek′ənd)

noun

    1. of a minute of time
    2. the basic unit of time in the SI, MKS, CGS, or FPS systems: redefined in 1967 so that it is now based on the periodic oscillations of an atomic clock which uses cesium atoms and has a resonance frequency of 9,192,631,770 hertz: abbrev. s
  2. of a minute of angular measurement: symbol, ″
  3. a very short period of time; moment; instant
  4. a specific point in time

Etymology: ME seconde < ML (pars minuta) secunda, second (small part): from being a further division (i.e., beyond the minute) < L secundus: see second

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

idioms second idiom

medical second definition - medical

telecom second definition - telecom

second Synonyms

second

modif.

secondary, subordinate, inferior, next, next in order, following, next to the first, next in rank, another, other; see also unimportant.

on second thought

on further consideration, on mature consideration, in reality, on the other hand, as an afterthought; see also incidentally.

play second fiddle to

defer to, be inferior to, be less successful than, get less attention than; see fail 1.


second

n.

flash, trice, flash of an eyelid; see moment, instant.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

second Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • knock: She did herself and Clevedon proud on Monday 1st August by knocking almost 4 seconds off her PB in the 200m Freestyle event.

Adjective modifier

  • few: In the following few seconds I think Richard invented a new sport; climbing wall running!

Modifies a noun

  • half: Quiet second half, broken up by a lot of Bolton changes.

Used with adjective complement

  • finish: THE PLATE Tough competition followed the round robin rounds with the overall plate winner going to Stan Smith with Derek Shaw finishing second.

Noun used with modifier

  • forty: We stood inside the room for fully forty seconds, and the odd old gentleman did not look at us.

Preposition: in

  • command: Villeneuve, who commanded the Franco-Spanish fleet, had been second in command at the Battle of the Nile.

Preposition: from

  • left: Select the " subtract " option - second from the left as indicated below.

Preposition: since

  • epoch: The epoch seconds information is used to delete old orders and represents the number of seconds since the epoch ( Jan.
second usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

second quotes

Every great mistake has a halfway moment, a split second when it can be recalled and perhaps remedied.

-Buck, Pearl ne¤  e Sydenstricker

Not a penny off the pay; not a second on the day.

-Cook, ArthurJames

Cricket remains for me the game of games, the sanspareil, the great metaphor, the best marriage ever devisedof mind and body† For meit remainstheProust of pastimes, the subtlest and most poetic, the most past- and-present; whose beauty can lie equally in days, in a whole, or in one tiny phrase, a blinding split second.

-Fowles,John Robert

second quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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"second." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/second>

APA Style

second. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/second

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