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Webster 1913 Edition

Series

Se′ries

,
Noun.
[L.
series
, fr.
serere
,
sertum
, to join or bind together; cf. Gr. [GREEK][GREEK][GREEK] to fasten, Skr.
sarit
thread. Cf.
Assert
,
Desert
a solitude,
Exert
,
Insert
,
Seraglio
.]
1.
A number of things or events standing or succeeding in order, and connected by a like relation; sequence; order; course; a succession of things;
as, a continuous
series
of calamitous events
.
During some years his life a
series
of triumphs.
Macaulay.
2.
(Biol.)
Any comprehensive group of animals or plants including several subordinate related groups.
☞ Sometimes a series includes several classes; sometimes only orders or families; in other cases only species.
4.
(Math.)
An indefinite number of terms succeeding one another, each of which is derived from one or more of the preceding by a fixed law, called the law of the series;
as, an arithmetical
series
; a geometrical
series
.

Webster 1828 Edition

Series

SE'RIES

,
Noun.
[L. this word probably belongs to the Shemetic, the primary sense of which is to stretch or strain.]
1. A continued succession in the things of the same order, and bearing the same relation to each other; as a series of kings; a series of successors.
2. Sequence; order; course; succession of things; as a series of calamitous events.
3. In natural history, an order or subdivision of some class of natural bodies.
4. In arithmetic and algebra, a number of terms in succession, increasing or diminishing in a certain ratio; as arithmetical series and geometrical series. [See Progression.]

Definition 2024

series

series

See also: séries, seríes, sériés, and sèries

English

Noun

series ‎(plural series)

  1. A number of things that follow on one after the other or are connected one after the other.
    • 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 19, in The China Governess:
      When Timothy and Julia hurried up the staircase to the bedroom floor, where a considerable commotion was taking place, Tim took Barry Leach with him. […]. The captive made no resistance and came not only quietly but in a series of eager little rushes like a timid dog on a choke chain.
    • 2013 June 28, Joris Luyendijk, “Our banks are out of control”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 3, page 21:
      Seeing the British establishment struggle with the financial sector is like watching an alcoholic […].  Until 2008 there was denial over what finance had become. When a series of bank failures made this impossible, there was widespread anger, leading to the public humiliation of symbolic figures.
    A series of seemingly inconsequential events led cumulatively to the fall of the company.‎
  2. (US, Canada) A television or radio program which consists of several episodes that are broadcast in regular intervals
    Friends was one of the most successful television series in recent years.
  3. (Britain) A group of episodes of a television or radio program broadcast in regular intervals with a long break between each group, usually with one year between the beginning of each.
    The third series of Friends aired from 1996 to 1997.‎
  4. (mathematics) The sum of the terms of a sequence.
    The harmonic series has been much studied.‎
  5. (cricket, baseball) A group of matches between two sides, with the aim being to win more matches than the opposition.
    The Blue Jays are playing the Yankees in a four-game series.‎
  6. (zoology) An unranked taxon.
  7. (botany) A subdivision of a genus, a taxonomic rank below that of section (and subsection) but above that of species.
  8. (commerce) A parcel of rough diamonds of assorted qualities.
  9. (phonology) A set of consonants that share a particular phonetic or phonological feature.

Usage notes

  • In the United Kingdom, television and radio programs (spelt in Commonwealth English as "programmes") are divided into series, which are usually a year long. In North America, the word "series" is a synonym of "program", and programs are divided into year-long seasons.
  • (mathematics): Beginning students often confuse series with sequence.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Adjective

series ‎(not comparable)

A series circuit
  1. (electronics) Connected one after the other in a circuit.
    You have to connect the lights in series for them to work properly.

Antonyms


Catalan

Verb

series

  1. second-person singular conditional form of ser

Dutch

Pronunciation

Noun

series f pl

  1. Plural form of serie

Latin

Etymology

From serō ‎(“to bind”).

Pronunciation

  • (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈse.ri.eːs/, [ˈsɛ.ri.eːs]

Noun

seriēs f ‎(genitive seriēī); fifth declension

  1. a row
  2. a succession
  3. a series
  4. a chain

Inflection

Fifth declension.

Case Singular Plural
nominative seriēs seriēs
genitive seriēī seriērum
dative seriēī seriēbus
accusative seriem seriēs
ablative seriē seriēbus
vocative seriēs seriēs

Descendants

References

Spanish

Noun

series

  1. plural of serie

Swedish

Noun

series

  1. indefinite genitive singular of serie

Etymology

Borrowing from Latin series, from serere ‎(“to join together, bind”).

Pronunciation

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