single

¹sin·gle

adjective \ˈsiŋ-gəl\

Definition of SINGLE

1

a : not married

b : of or relating to celibacy

2

: unaccompanied by others : lone, sole <the single survivor of the disaster>

3

a (1) : consisting of or having only one part, feature, or portion <single consonants> (2) : consisting of one as opposed to or in contrast with many : uniform <a single standard for men and women> (3) : consisting of only one in number <holds to a single ideal>

b : having but one whorl of petals or ray flowers <a single rose>

4

a : consisting of a separate unique whole : individual <every single citizen>

b : of, relating to, or involving only one person

5

a : frank, honest <a single devotion>

b : exclusively attentive <an eye single to the truth>

6

: unbroken, undivided

7

: having no equal or like : singular

8

: designed for the use of one person only <a single room> <a single bed>

Examples of SINGLE

1. A single shoe was found.
2. It costs $10 for a single glass of wine!
3. a single serving of carrots
4. He earns $2,000 in a single week.

Origin of SINGLE

Middle English sengle, from Anglo-French, from Latin singulus one only; akin to Latin sem- one — more at same

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to SINGLE

Synonyms

unattached, unmarried, unwed

Antonyms

attached, espoused, hitched, married, wedded (also wed)

Related Words

fancy-free, footloose; marriageable, unpaired; divorced, separated

Near Antonyms

mated, paired; affianced, betrothed, committed, engaged, pledged, promised; remarried

Other Seed Plant Terms

aubergine, box, bramble, briar, composite, perpetual, pulse, trefoil

Rhymes with SINGLE

cringle, dingle, jingle, mingle, shingle, tingle

²single

noun

Definition of SINGLE

1

a : a separate individual person or thing

b : an unmarried person and especially one young and socially active —usually used in plural

c (1) : a recording having one short tune on each side (2) : a music recording having two or more tracks that is shorter than a full-length album; also : a song that is particularly popular independent of other songs on the same album or by the same artist

2

: a base hit that allows the batter to reach first base

3

a plural : a tennis match or similar game with one player on each side

b : a golf match between two players —usually used in plural

4

: a room (as in a hotel) for one guest — compare double 7

Examples of SINGLE

1. He hit a single to right field.
2. Do you want to play singles or doubles?

First Known Use of SINGLE

1604

Other Baseball Terms

alley, cleanup, nightcap, safety, save, shag

³single

verb

sin·gledsin·gling \-g(ə-)liŋ\

Definition of SINGLE

transitive verb

1

: to select or distinguish from a number or group —usually used with out

2

a : to advance or score (a base runner) by a single

b : to bring about the scoring of (a run) by a single

intransitive verb

: to make a single in baseball

Examples of SINGLE

1. He singled to right field.

First Known Use of SINGLE

1628