/bɛnt͡ʃ/
OriginFrom 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.
- A long seat with or without a back, found for example in parks and schools.
“They sat on a park bench and tossed bread crumbs to the ducks and pigeons.”
“Scarborough station's famous 139-metre-long bench, believed to be the longest in the world, has been restored in a £14,500 project.”
- figurativelyThe people who decide on the verdict, collectively; the judiciary.
“They are awaiting a decision on the motion from the bench.”
- figurativelyThe office or dignity of a judge.
“She sat on the bench for 30 years before she retired.”
- A long seat for politicians in a parliamentary chamber.
“the government front bench”
“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.”
- figurativelyThe dignity of holding an official seat.
“the bench of bishops”
“the civic bench”
- figurativelyThe people who hold a certain type of official seat, collectively; a group of officeholders.
“Mr. Zuckerberg’s repositioning of Meta started in earnest last year, when he began rearranging his bench of lieutenants.”
- The place where players (substitutes) and coaches sit when not playing.
“He spent the first three games on the bench, watching.”
“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 not”
- figurativelyThe number of players on a team able to participate, often expressed in terms of length.
“Injuries have shortened the bench.”
- A place where assembly or hand work is performed; a workbench.
“She placed the workpiece on the bench, inspected it closely, and opened the cover.”
- A horizontal padded surface, usually adjustable in height and inclination and often with attached weight rack, used for proper posture during exercise.
“2008, Lou Schuler, "Foreward", in Nate Green, Built for Show, page xii
I had no bench or power rack, so by necessity every exercise I did started with the weights on the floor.”
- A bracket used to mount land surveying equipment onto a stone or a wall.
“After removing the bench, we can use the mark left on the wall as a reference point.”
- A flat ledge in the slope of an earthwork, work of masonry, or similar.
“That number carried his glance to the top of this first bulging bench of cliff-base.”
- A thin strip of relatively flat land bounded by steeper slopes above and below.
- Australia, New-ZealandA kitchen surface on which to prepare food, a counter.
- Australia, New-ZealandA bathroom surface which holds the washbasin, a vanity.
- A collection or group of dogs exhibited to the public, traditionally on benches or raised platforms.
- The weight one is able to bench press, especially the maximum weight capable of being pressed.
“He became frustrated when his bench increased by only 10 pounds despite a month of training.”
- transitiveTo remove a player from play.
“They benched him for the rest of the game because they thought he was injured.”
“OK, you are out! You’re benched!”
- figuratively, transitiveTo remove someone from a position of responsibility temporarily.
- slangTo push a person backward against a conspirator behind them who is on their hands and knees, causing them to fall over.
- transitiveTo furnish with benches.
“'Twas benched with turf.”
“stately theatres benched crescent-wise”
- transitiveTo place on a bench or seat of honour.
“whom I […] have benched and reared to worship”
- colloquial, intransitive, transitiveTo lift by bench pressing
“I heard he can bench 150 pounds.”
“1988, Frederick C. Hatfield, "Powersource: Ties that bind", Ironman 47 (6): 21.
For the first several years of my exclusive career in powerlifting, I couldn't bench too well.”
- uncountableA language spoken in Ethiopia
- uncountableThe people who speak the Bench language
- A surname.
Formsbenches(plural) · benk(alternative, dialectal) · bink(alternative, dialectal) · benches(present, singular, third-person) · benching(participle, present) · benched(participle, past) · benched(past) · Benches(plural)
Source: Wiktionary