SECOND

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does second mean? 

• SECOND (noun)
  The noun SECOND has 10 senses:

1. 1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites

2. an indefinitely short time

3. the fielding position of the player on a baseball team who is stationed near the second of the bases in the infield

4. a particular point in time

5. following the first in an ordering or series

6. a 60th part of a minute of arc

7. the official attendant of a contestant in a duel or boxing match

8. a speech seconding a motion

9. the gear that has the second lowest forward gear ratio in the gear box of a motor vehicle

10. merchandise that has imperfections; usually sold at a reduced price without the brand name

  Familiarity information: SECOND used as a noun is familiar.

• SECOND (adjective)
  The adjective SECOND has 2 senses:

1. coming next after the first in position in space or time or degree or magnitude

2. a part or voice or instrument or orchestra section lower in pitch than or subordinate to the first

  Familiarity information: SECOND used as an adjective is rare.

• SECOND (verb)
  The verb SECOND has 2 senses:

1. give support or one's approval to

2. transfer an employee to a different, temporary assignment

  Familiarity information: SECOND used as a verb is rare.

• SECOND (adverb)
  The adverb SECOND has 1 sense:

1. in the second place

  Familiarity information: SECOND used as an adverb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SECOND (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

s; sec; second

Hypernyms ("second" is a kind of...):

time unit; unit of time (a unit for measuring time periods)

Meronyms (parts of "second"):

millisecond; msec (one thousandth (10^-3) of a second)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "second"):

leap second (a second (as measured by an atomic clock) added to or subtracted from Greenwich Mean Time in order to compensate for slowing in the Earth's rotation)

Holonyms ("second" is a part of...):

min; minute (a unit of time equal to 60 seconds or 1/60th of an hour)

Sense 2

Meaning:

An indefinitely short time

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

bit; minute; mo; moment; second

Context example:

in just a bit

Hypernyms ("second" is a kind of...):

time (an indefinite period (usually marked by specific attributes or activities))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "second"):

blink of an eye; flash; heartbeat; instant; jiffy; New York minute; split second; trice; twinkling; wink (a very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat))

Sense 3

Meaning:

The fielding position of the player on a baseball team who is stationed near the second of the bases in the infield

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

second; second base

Hypernyms ("second" is a kind of...):

position ((in team sports) the role assigned to an individual player)

Holonyms ("second" is a member of...):

baseball team (a team that plays baseball)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A particular point in time

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

instant; minute; moment; second

Context example:

the moment he arrived the party began

Hypernyms ("second" is a kind of...):

point; point in time (an instant of time)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "second"):

climax; culmination (the decisive moment in a novel or play)

eleventh hour; last minute (the latest possible moment)

moment of truth (a crucial moment on which much depends)

moment of truth (the moment in a bullfight when the matador kills the bull)

pinpoint (a very brief moment)

time (a suitable moment)

psychological moment (the most appropriate time for achieving a desired effect)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Following the first in an ordering or series

Classified under:

Nouns denoting relations between people or things or ideas

Context example:

he came in a close second

Hypernyms ("second" is a kind of...):

rank (relative status)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "second"):

latter (the second of two or the second mentioned of two)

Derivation:

second (coming next after the first in position in space or time or degree or magnitude)

Sense 6

Meaning:

A 60th part of a minute of arc

Classified under:

Nouns denoting quantities and units of measure

Synonyms:

arcsecond; second

Context example:

the treasure is 2 minutes and 45 seconds south of here

Hypernyms ("second" is a kind of...):

angular unit (a unit of measurement for angles)

Holonyms ("second" is a part of...):

arcminute; minute; minute of arc (a unit of angular distance equal to a 60th of a degree)

Sense 7

Meaning:

The official attendant of a contestant in a duel or boxing match

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("second" is a kind of...):

attendant; attender; tender (someone who waits on or tends to or attends to the needs of another)

Sense 8

Meaning:

A speech seconding a motion

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

endorsement; indorsement; second; secondment

Context example:

do I hear a second?

Hypernyms ("second" is a kind of...):

agreement (the verbal act of agreeing)

Derivation:

second (give support or one's approval to)

Sense 9

Meaning:

The gear that has the second lowest forward gear ratio in the gear box of a motor vehicle

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

second; second gear

Context example:

he had to shift down into second to make the hill

Hypernyms ("second" is a kind of...):

gear; gear mechanism (a mechanism for transmitting motion for some specific purpose (as the steering gear of a vehicle))

Holonyms ("second" is a part of...):

automotive vehicle; motor vehicle (a self-propelled wheeled vehicle that does not run on rails)

Sense 10

Meaning:

Merchandise that has imperfections; usually sold at a reduced price without the brand name

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

irregular; second

Hypernyms ("second" is a kind of...):

merchandise; product; ware (commodities offered for sale)

• SECOND (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Coming next after the first in position in space or time or degree or magnitude

Synonyms:

2d; 2nd; second

Similar:

ordinal (being or denoting a numerical order in a series)

Derivation:

second (following the first in an ordering or series)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A part or voice or instrument or orchestra section lower in pitch than or subordinate to the first

Context example:

the second violins

Domain category:

music (an artistic form of auditory communication incorporating instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner)

Antonym:

first (highest in pitch or chief among parts or voices or instruments or orchestra sections)

• SECOND (verb)

Conjugation:

Sense 1

Meaning:

Give support or one's approval to

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Synonyms:

back; endorse; indorse; second

Context example:

endorse a new project

Hypernyms (to "second" is one way to...):

back up; support (give moral or psychological support, aid, or courage to)

Verb group:

back; endorse; indorse; plump for; plunk for; support (be behind; approve of)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

second (a speech seconding a motion)

seconder (someone who endorses a motion or petition as a necessary preliminary to a discussion or vote)

secondment (a speech seconding a motion)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Transfer an employee to a different, temporary assignment

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Context example:

The officer was seconded for duty overseas

Hypernyms (to "second" is one way to...):

reassign; transfer (transfer somebody to a different position or location of work)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

secondment (the detachment of a person from their regular organization for temporary assignment elsewhere)

• SECOND (adverb)

Sense 1

Meaning:

In the second place

Synonyms:

second; secondly

Context example:

second, we must consider the economy

 Context examples 

His second wooing, he resolved, should be as calm and simple as possible.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

It was the second death I had known, and the sorrow of the first was still fresh in my heart.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

Henry indicated with his head a second pair, and a third.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

A dose calculation unit expressed in milligram(s) per square meter per period of time equal to sixty seconds.

(Milligram per Square Meter per Minute, NCI Thesaurus)

The second half of 2020, when you welcome Saturn back into Capricorn, should be easy for you.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

A dose calculation expressed in milligram(s) period of time equal to sixty seconds.

(Milligram per Minute, NCI Thesaurus)

A dose calculation unit expressed in milligram(s) per gram per period of time equal to sixty seconds.

(Milligram per Gram per Minute, NCI Thesaurus)

“One would suppose you wanted a second visit from her.”

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

This tied with 1990 as the second highest for March in the 1880–2015 record.

(March 2015 and first quarter of year warmest on record, NOAA)

The second came soon afterwards, thinking only of how she might get a feather for herself, but she had scarcely touched her sister than she was held fast.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)