4 VERB When someone is seized , they are arrested or captured. □ [be V -ed] Two military observers were seized by enemy troops yesterday. □ [V n] Men carrying sub-machine guns seized the five soldiers and drove them away.
5 VERB When you seize an opportunity, you take advantage of it and do something that you want to do. □ [V n] During the riots hundreds of people seized the opportunity to steal property.
▸ seize on PHRASAL VERB If you seize on something or seize upon it, you show great interest in it, often because it is useful to you. □ [V P n] Newspapers seized on the results as proof that global warming wasn't really happening.
▸ seize up
1 PHRASAL VERB If a part of your body seizes up , it suddenly stops working, because you have strained it or because you are getting old. □ [V P ] We are all born flexible but as we grow older, we tend to seize up a little.
2 PHRASAL VERB If something such as an engine seizes up , it stops working, because it has not been properly cared for. □ [V P ] She put diesel fuel, instead of petrol, into the tank causing the motor to seize up. SYNONYMS seize VERB 1
grab: I managed to grab her sleeve.
grasp: He grasped both my hands.
snatch: Mick snatched the cards from Archie's hand.
sei|zure /siː ʒə r / (seizures )
1 N‑COUNT If someone has a seizure , they have a sudden violent attack of an illness, especially one that affects their heart or brain. □ …a mild cardiac seizure. □ I was prescribed drugs to control seizures.
2 N‑COUNT If there is a seizure of power or a seizure of an area of land, a group of people suddenly take control of the place, using force. □ [+ of ] …the seizure of territory through force.
3 N‑COUNT When an organization such as the police or customs service makes a seizure of illegal goods, they find them and take them away. □ [+ of ] Police have made one of the biggest seizures of heroin there's ever been in Britain. □ …arms seizures.
4 N‑COUNT If a financial institution or a government makes a seizure of someone's assets, they take their money or property from them because they have not paid money that they owe. □ [+ of ] A court ordered the seizure of two ships for non-payment of the debt.
sel|dom /se ldəm/ ADV [ADV before v] If something seldom happens, it happens only occasionally. □ They seldom speak. □ We were seldom at home.
se|lect ◆◇◇ /s I le kt/ (selects , selecting , selected )
1 VERB If you select something, you choose it from a number of things of the same kind. □ [V n] Voters are selecting candidates for both U.S. Senate seats and for 52 congressional seats. □ [V -ed] The movie is being shown in selected cities. [Also V n + for/from ]
2 VERB If you select a file or a piece of text on a computer screen, you click on it so that it is marked in a different colour, usually in order for you to give the computer an instruction relating to that file or piece of text. [COMPUTING ] □ [V n] I selected a file and pressed the Delete key.
3 ADJ [ADJ n] A select group is a small group of some of the best people or things of their kind. □ …a select group of French cheeses.
4 ADJ [usu ADJ n] If you describe something as select , you mean it has many desirable features, but is available only to people who have a lot of money or who belong to a high social class. □ The couturier is throwing a very lavish and very select party. SYNONYMS select VERB 1
choose: They will be able to choose their own leaders in democratic elections.
pick: I had deliberately picked a city with a tropical climate.
opt for: Depending on your circumstances you may wish to opt for one method or the other.
se|le ct com|mi t|tee (select committees ) N‑COUNT A select committee is a committee of members of a parliament which is set up to investigate and report on a particular matter.
se|lec|tion ◆◇◇ /s I le kʃ ə n/ (selections )
1 N‑UNCOUNT Selection is the act of selecting one or more people or things from a group. □ …Darwin's principles of natural selection. □ Dr. Sullivan's selection to head the Department of Health was greeted with satisfaction.
2 N‑COUNT A selection of people or things is a set of them that have been selected from a larger group. □ [+ of ] …this selection of popular songs.
3 N‑COUNT [usu sing] The selection of goods in a shop is the particular range of goods that it has available and from which you can choose what you want. □ [+ of ] It offers the widest selection of antiques of every description in a one-day market. SYNONYMS selection NOUN 1
choice: It's available in a choice of colours.
pick: We had the pick of suits from the shop.
option: What other options do you have?
preference: Parents can express a preference for the school their child attends.
se|lec|tive /s I le kt I v/
1 ADJ [ADJ n] A selective process applies only to a few things or people. □ Selective breeding may result in a greyhound running faster. ● se|lec|tive|ly ADV [usu ADV with v] □ Within the project, trees are selectively cut on a 25-year rotation. ● se|lec|tiv|ity /s I le kt I v I ti/ N‑UNCOUNT □ The emphasis on selectivity of audience by advertisers has created problems for the industry.