Presiding

How to spell presiding

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce presiding

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does presiding mean?

1. adjectiveHolding the position of authority that directs a meeting, court, or formal occasion.
2. verbCurrently chairing or directing a meeting, ceremony, or court as the person in authority.

Presiding in a sentence

• adjective

  The presiding judge instructed the jury before lunch.

• verb

  She is presiding over the annual budget meeting this afternoon.

• adjective

  The presiding officer counted the votes after the meeting closed.

• verb

  The senator was presiding when the vote was finally called.

Where does presiding come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This is the present participle of the verb 'preside', which English took from the Latin praesidere, meaning literally 'to sit in front of' or 'to sit before'. That verb was built from prae, meaning 'before' or 'in front', joined to sedere, meaning 'to sit', so the original image is of a person seated at the head of an assembly to guard and direct it. From the sense of guarding, Latin praesidere also gave rise to praesidium, a garrison or protective body, which is why the word carries an overtone of authority and oversight. English borrowed 'preside' through French in the 1600s, and 'presiding' soon followed as the form used to describe whoever holds the chair or directs proceedings. The same sedere root sits, fittingly, inside 'sedentary', 'session' and 'resident', and noticing that single 's' in the middle helps guard against doubling it.

How the word is built

• pre- (before, in front)
• sid (from sedere: to sit)
• -ing (present participle)