Dictionary Home » Dictionary Definitions » section

section

Listen See in Thesaurus See in a sentence

The definition of a section is a piece of something.

(noun)

An example of a section is a piece of pie.

To section is defined as to divide something up into parts.

(verb)

An example of to section is to divide a playing field up into different obstacle courses.

See section in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun

the act or process of cutting or separating by cutting; specif., an incision in surgery
1. a part separated or removed by cutting; slice; division
2. a very thin slice, as of tissue, used for microscopic study
1. a part or division of a book, newspaper, etc.
2. a numbered paragraph of a writing, a law, etc.
any distinct, constituent part: a bookcase in five sections, various sections of society
a segment of an orange, grapefruit, etc.
see township (sense )
1. a part of a city, country, etc.; district or region: a hilly section, the business section
2. ☆ a division of public lands, equal to 640 acres or one square mile (2.59 square kilometers or 259.005 hectares)
a loose subdivision of a biological genus, group, family, etc.
a view or drawing of a thing as it would appear if cut straight through in a given plane
any of the distinct groups of instruments or voices in an orchestra or chorus: the woodwind section
any of several tactical subdivisions of military, air, or naval forces
☆
1. part of a sleeping car containing an upper and lower berth
2. a division of a railroad right of way, usually several miles of track under the care of a single maintenance crew
☆ any of two or more buses, trains, or airplanes put into service for a particular route and schedule to accommodate extra passengers
Educ. any of the classes into which the students taking a course with a large enrollment are divided: Prof. Brown's section of Freshman English
Printing a mark (§) used to indicate a section in a book, etc., or as a reference mark
also section mark

Origin: L sectio < sectus, pp. of secare, to cut: see saw

transitive verb

to cut or divide into sections
to represent in sections, as in mechanical drawing

See section in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun

One of several components; a piece.
A subdivision of a written work.
Law A division of a statute or code.
A distinct portion of a newspaper: the sports section.
A distinct area of a town, county, or country: a residential section.
A land unit equal to one square mile (2.59 square kilometers), 640 acres, or ¹/₃₆ of a township.
The act or process of separating or cutting, especially the surgical cutting or dividing of tissue.
A thin slice, as of tissue, suitable for microscopic examination.
A segment of a fruit, especially a citrus fruit.
Representation of a solid object as it would appear if cut by an intersecting plane, so that the internal structure is displayed.
Music A group of instruments or voices in the same class considered as a division of a band, orchestra, or choir: the rhythm section; the woodwind section.
A class or discussion group of students taking the same course: She taught three sections of English composition.
a. A portion of railroad track maintained by a single crew.
b. An area in a train's sleeping car containing an upper and lower berth.
An army tactical unit smaller than a platoon and larger than a squad.
A unit of vessels or aircraft within a division of armed forces.
One of two or more vehicles, such as a bus or train, given the same route and schedule, often used to carry extra passengers.
a. The character (§) used in printing to mark the beginning of a section.
b. This character used as the fourth in a series of reference marks for footnotes.