second

pronunciation

How to pronounce second in British English: UK [ˈsekənd , sɪˈkɒnd] word uk audio image

How to pronounce second in American English: US [ˈsekənd , sɪˈkɑːnd] word us audio image

Noun:

1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
an indefinitely short time
the fielding position of the player on a baseball team who is stationed near 2nd base
a particular point in time
following the first in an ordering or series
a 60th part of a minute of arc
the official attendant of a contestant in a duel or boxing match
a speech seconding a motion
the gear that has the second lowest forward gear ratio in the gear box of a motor vehicle
merchandise that has imperfections; usually sold at a reduced price without the brand name
Verb:

give support or one's approval to
transfer an employee to a different, temporary assignment
Adjective:

coming next after the first in position in space or time or degree or magnitude
coming next after first
a part or voice or instrument or orchestra section lower in pitch than or subordinate to the first
having the second highest gear ratio
Adverb:

in the second place

Word Origin

second: second: [13] Latin secundus originally meant ‘following’ – it was derived from sequī ‘follow’, source of English sequence – and only secondarily came to be used as the ordinal version of ‘two’. English acquired it via Old French second, employing it to take over part of the role of other, which until then had denoted ‘second’ as well as ‘other’.Its noun use for ‘sixtieth of a minute’, first recorded in English in the 14th century, comes from medieval Latin secunda minuta, literally ‘second minute’ – a minute was a ‘sixtieth part’, and so a ‘second minute’ was a ‘sixtieth of a sixtieth’. Latin secundus was also used for ‘favourable’, and in this sense the verb secundāre was formed from it, meaning ‘favour’.English acquired it via French seconder as second ‘support’ [16]. (The differently pronounced second ‘transfer to a different job’ [19] comes from the French phrase en second ‘in second rank’.)=> sect, sequal, sequence, sue, suit

second (adj.): "next after first," c. 1300, from Old French second, secont, and directly from Latin secundus "following, next in time or order," also "secondary, subordinate, inferior," from root of sequi "follow" (see sequel). Replaced native other in this sense because of the ambiguousness of the earlier word. Second sight is from 1610s; an etymologically perverse term, because it means in reality the sight of events before, not after, they occur. Second fiddle first attested 1809: A metaphor borrowed from a musical performer who plays the second or counter to one who plays the first or the "air." [Bartlett, "Dictionary of Americanisms," 1848]

second (n.1): "one-sixtieth of a minute of degree," also "sixtieth part of a minute of time," late 14c. in geometry, from Old French seconde, from Medieval Latin secunda, short for secunda pars minuta "second diminished part," the result of the second division of the hour by sixty (the first being the "prime minute," now called the minute), from Latin secunda, fem. of secundus (see second (adj.)). The second hand of a clock is attested from 1759.

second (v.): 1580s, "to support or represent in a duel, fight, etc.," from Middle French seconder, from Latin secundare "to assist, make favorable," from secundus "assisting, favorable, following, second" (see second (adj.)). The parliamentary sense is first recorded 1590s. Related: Seconded; seconding.