Seconds

How to spell seconds

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce seconds

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does seconds mean?

1. nounUnits of time, each equal to one sixtieth of a minute.
2. verbFormally supports a proposal so that it can be discussed or voted on.
3. nounA further portion of food taken after finishing the first.
4. nounItems sold cheaply because of minor manufacturing faults.

Seconds in a sentence

• noun

  The microwave timer counted down the final ten seconds.

• verb

  Whoever seconds the motion should say so before the vote.

• noun

  There was plenty of stew left, so everyone went back for seconds.

• noun

  The factory outlet sells branded seconds with tiny stitching flaws.

• noun

  The sprinter shaved two seconds off her personal best.

• verb

  The chair noted that nobody seconds the amendment, so it lapsed.

Where does seconds come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The base word descends from the Latin secundus, meaning 'following' or 'next in order', which was itself formed from the verb sequi, 'to follow'. The sense of an ordinal position came first: the second thing is the one that follows the first. English took it through Old French in the 1200s. The unit of time has a charming logic: medieval astronomers divided an hour into small parts called the pars minuta prima ('first small part', giving us 'minute'), then divided again into the pars minuta secunda ('second small part'), which English shortened simply to 'second'. The plural -s spelling is regular, and the same sequi root survives in 'sequence', 'consecutive', and 'sequel'.

How the word is built

• second (from Latin secundus: following, second in order)
• -s (plural / third-person verb)