Bench Meaning
/ˈbɛnt͡ʃ/Definition, CEFR level A2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA long seat with or without a back, found for example in parks and schools.
nounThe seat where the judges sit in court., The people who decide on the verdict, collectively; the judiciary.
Sentence Examples
I'm going to sit on the bench over there next to the street lamp.
The manager sat on the bench with his arms folded.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The old man sat on the wooden ____ in the sunny park.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
We sat on a wooden ____ and watched the children play in the park city.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English bench, benk, bynk, from Old English benċ (“bench”), from Proto-West Germanic *banki, from Proto-Germanic *bankiz (“bench”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeg-. Cognate with Scots benk, bink (“bench”), West Frisian bank (“bench”), Dutch bank (“bench”), German Bank (“bench”), Danish bænk (“bench”), Swedish bänk (“bench”), Icelandic bekkur (“bench”). Doublet of banc, banco, and bank.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Scarborough station's famous 139-metre-long bench, believed to be the longest in the world, has been restored in a £14,500 project."
— 2021 January 27, “Stop & Examine”, in RAIL, number 923, page 71, photo caption:
"On the opposition benches at Holyrood, Scottish Labour's transport spokesman Neil Bibby favours a more formal approach of involving passenger and worker representatives in the management of ScotRail."
— 2022 April 6, Conrad Landin, “ScotRail in the public eye...”, in RAIL, number 954, page 40:
"Mr. Zuckerberg’s repositioning of Meta started in earnest last year, when he began rearranging his bench of lieutenants."
— 2022 July 26, Mike Isaac, “‘Operating With Increased Intensity’: Zuckerberg Leads Meta Into Next Phase”, in The New York Times:
"But Chelsea, who left Didier Drogba on the bench as coach Carlo Ancelotti favoured Fernando Torres, staged a stirring fightback to move up to fourth and keep United in their sights on a night when nothing other than victory would have kept the Blues in contention."
— 2011 March 1, Phil McNulty, “Chelsea 2 - 1 Man Utd”, in BBC:
"That number carried his glance to the top of this first bulging bench of cliff-base."
— 1912 January, Zane Grey, chapter 8, in Riders of the Purple Sage […], New York, N.Y.; London: Harper & Brothers Publishers, →OCLC:
Explore More A2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The old man sat on the wooden ____ in the sunny park.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
We sat on a wooden ____ and watched the children play in the park city.