3 → see also death sentence , life sentence , suspended sentence
4 VERB When a judge sentences someone, he or she states in court what their punishment will be. □ [V n + to ] A military court sentenced him to death in his absence. □ [be V -ed] He has admitted the charge and will be sentenced later. [Also V n to-inf] SYNONYMS sentence NOUN 2
punishment: The usual punishment is a fine.
verdict: Three judges will deliver their verdict in October.
judgment: The Court is expected to give its judgement within the next ten days. VERB 4
convict: There was insufficient evidence to convict him.
condemn: He was condemned to life imprisonment.
penalize: Use of the car is penalized by increasing the fares of parking lots.
se n|tence ad|verb (sentence adverbs ) N‑COUNT Adverbs such as 'fortunately' and 'perhaps' which apply to the whole clause, rather than to part of it, are sometimes called sentence adverbs .
sen|ti|ent /se ntiənt, -ʃ ə nt/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] A sentient being is capable of experiencing things through its senses. [FORMAL ]
sen|ti|ment /se nt I mənt/ (sentiments )
1 N‑VAR A sentiment that people have is an attitude which is based on their thoughts and feelings. □ Public sentiment rapidly turned anti-American. □ …nationalist sentiments that threaten to split the country.
2 N‑COUNT A sentiment is an idea or feeling that someone expresses in words. □ I must agree with the sentiments expressed by the previous speaker. □ The Foreign Secretary echoed this sentiment.
3 N‑UNCOUNT Sentiment is feelings such as pity or love, especially for things in the past, and may be considered exaggerated and foolish. □ Laura kept that letter out of sentiment.
sen|ti|ment|al /se nt I me nt ə l/
1 ADJ Someone or something that is sentimental feels or shows pity or love, sometimes to an extent that is considered exaggerated and foolish. □ [+ about ] I'm trying not to be sentimental about the past. ● sen|ti|men|tal|ly ADV [usu ADV with v] □ Childhood had less freedom and joy than we sentimentally attribute to it. ● sen|ti|men|tal|ity /se nt I mentæ l I ti/ N‑UNCOUNT □ In this book there is no sentimentality.
2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] Sentimental means relating to or involving feelings such as pity or love, especially for things in the past. □ Our paintings and photographs are of sentimental value only.
sen|ti|men|tal|ist /se nt I me ntəl I st/ (sentimentalists ) N‑COUNT If you describe someone as a sentimentalist , you believe that they are sentimental about things.
sen|ti|men|tal|ize /se nt I me ntəla I z/ (sentimentalizes , sentimentalizing , sentimentalized ) in BRIT, also use sentimentalise VERB If you sentimentalize something, you make it seem sentimental or think about it in a sentimental way. □ [V n] He seems either to fear women or to sentimentalize them. □ [V ] He's the kind of filmmaker who doesn't hesitate to over-sentimentalize. □ [V -ed] …Rupert Brooke's sentimentalised glorification of war.
sen|ti|nel /se nt I n ə l/ (sentinels ) N‑COUNT A sentinel is a sentry. [LITERARY , OLD-FASHIONED ]
sen|try /se ntri/ (sentries ) N‑COUNT A sentry is a soldier who guards a camp or a building. □ The sentry would not let her enter.
se n|try box (sentry boxes ) also sentry-box N‑COUNT A sentry box is a narrow shelter with an open front in which a sentry can stand while on duty.
Sep. Sep. is a written abbreviation for September . The more usual abbreviation is Sept. □ …Friday Sep. 21, 1990.
sepa|rable /se pərəb ə l/ ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] If things are separable , they can be separated from each other. □ [+ from ] Character is not separable from physical form but is governed by it.
sepa|rate ◆◆◇ (separates , separating , separated ) The adjective and noun are pronounced /se pərət/. The verb is pronounced /se pəre I t/. 1 ADJ If one thing is separate from another, there is a barrier, space, or division between them, so that they are clearly two things. □ Each villa has a separate sitting-room. □ They are now making plans to form their own separate party. □ [+ from ] Business bank accounts were kept separate from personal ones. ● sepa|rate|ness N‑UNCOUNT □ [+ from ] …establishing Australia's cultural separateness from Britain.
2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] If you refer to separate things, you mean several different things, rather than just one thing. □ Use separate chopping boards for raw meats, cooked meats, vegetables and salads. □ Men and women have separate exercise rooms. □ The authorities say six civilians have been killed in two separate attacks.
3 VERB If you separate people or things that are together, or if they separate , they move apart. □ [V n] Police moved in to separate the two groups. □ [V n + from ] The pans were held in both hands and swirled around to separate gold particles from the dirt. □ [V + from ] The front end of the car separated from the rest of the vehicle. □ [V ] They separated. Stephen returned to the square. □ [be V -ed + from ] They're separated from the adult inmates.