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se·ques·ter | \ si-ˈkwe-stər 
\
\sequestered; sequestering\ si-ˈkwe-st(ə-)riŋ \
\Definition of sequester
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a : to set apart : segregate sequester a jury
2a : to seize especially by a writ of sequestration
b : to place (property) in custody especially in sequestration
3 : to bind (a metal or metal ion) in the form of a soluble complex or chelate by adding a suitable reagent for the purpose of preventing precipitation in water solution by chemical agents that would normally bring it about, of solubilizing precipitates already formed, or of otherwise suppressing undesired chemical or biological activity
sequester calcium and magnesium ions in the softening of hard water also : to bind or absorb (carbon dioxide) as part of a larger chemical process or compound … half of the starting material will be used up and half will be char. That can then be put back on the fields, where it will sequester carbon and help grow the next crop. — Emma Marris
sequester
nounDefinition of sequester (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : the imposition of automatic government spending reductions in accordance with sequestration
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Examples of sequester in a Sentence
Verb
The jury was sequestered until a verdict was reached.
He was sequestered in his room.
Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Before the jury questioning started Thursday morning, Judge Burke denied defense attorney Donna Rotunno's last-ditch petition for sequestered jury questioning.
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Lauren Del Valle, CNN, "7 jurors chosen for Weinstein trial: Prosecution accuses defense of eliminating white female jurors," 16 Jan. 2020 The Circle saw a rotating cast of strangers sequestered in individual apartments in a building in the U.K. and forced to become friends while only interacting with each other using a social media platform in a kind of online popularity contest.
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Adam Carlson, PEOPLE.com, "The Winner of Netflix's The Circle Opens Up About the Victory They Never Saw Coming," 15 Jan. 2020 These villains are faceless entities sequestered on top floors of tall buildings.
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Kareem Abdul-jabbar, The Hollywood Reporter, "Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 'Just Mercy' and the Difference Between Black and White Legal Dramas," 9 Jan. 2020 But sequestering these drugs in this one place really limits their use.
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Scientific American, "The Power of Spheres," 25 Dec. 2019 In 2008 America enacted a tax credit, 45Q, that was to reward the first 75m tonnes of CO2 sequestered through CCS.
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The Economist, "Climate policy needs negative carbon-dioxide emissions," 5 Dec. 2019 Instead of sequestering furniture and decorative objects in a single gallery, those objects are now interspersed in rooms throughout the chronologically arranged sequence of galleries.
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Steven Litt, cleveland, "Don’t let crowds deter you from visiting the expanded Museum of Modern Art in New York," 24 Nov. 2019 The authors put the value of one animal at more than $2 million, taking into account the value of carbon sequestered over the whale’s lifetime as well as other economic contributions such as fishery enhancement and ecotourism.
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Jana Randow / Bloomberg, Time, "One Whale Is Worth Thousands of Trees in Climate Fight, New Report Says," 20 Nov. 2019 Meanwhile Mitch, sequestered in his high-end suburban home, huddles with his team and rages against the sudden shift in social norms.
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Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, "Jennifer Aniston delivers a forceful TV return in The Morning Show," 28 Oct. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun The trees themselves need seven to ten years to become substantial enough to slow storm surges, shrink waves, and sequester enough carbon in their roots to make a difference.
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Jessica Wapner, Quartz, "Vietnamese women are hit harder by climate change—but they’re starting to fight back," 1 Dec. 2019 Chefs are exploring how to cook cover crops like peas and buckwheat, which regenerative farmers plant between harvests as a way to improve soil, control weeds and sequester carbon.
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Kim Severson, New York Times, "What Will We Eat in 2020? Something Toasted, Something Blue," 30 Dec. 2019 In his remarks, Karsner cited the value of mangroves, which not only sequester carbon but also mitigate coastal flooding.
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Liam Denning | Bloomberg, Washington Post, "Edison Figured Out Climate Action 100 Years Ago," 31 Oct. 2019 These practices have been shown to boost soil health, prevent erosion and sequester carbon in the soil.
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London Gibson, Indianapolis Star, "Small farms are dying. This plow-free plan could help save them.," 12 Dec. 2019 In the last few weeks of his tenure at the F.D.A., the former commissioner Scott Gottlieb issued a proposal requiring that stores sequester flavored e-cigarettes, except menthol, mint and tobacco, to areas off limits to minors.
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Sheila Kaplan, New York Times, "‘Juul-alikes’ Are Filling Shelves With Sweet, Teen-Friendly Nicotine Flavors," 13 Aug. 2019 Additionally, austere budget caps known as the sequester will snap into place early next year and slash domestic and military spending unless a deal is reached to raise them.
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Washington Post, "Budget meeting on Capitol Hill produces no progress as deadlines loom," 19 June 2019 Large conifers sequester more carbon — a natural process that removes from the atmosphere the heat-trapping gases that cause global warming — and are less fire-prone, especially when smaller trees and other fuels in between them are removed.
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Peter Fimrite, SFChronicle.com, "Rebuilding forests after massive fires: Debate over best methods moves to court," 10 Dec. 2019 Intact, continuously growing forests sequester more carbon than those that are newly planted or periodically logged, said Faison, an author on the paper.
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Kate S. Petersen, Ars Technica, "Massachusetts bill would block logging, let state forests keep their carbon," 26 Nov. 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sequester.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for sequester
sequester
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of sequester
formal : to keep (a person or group) apart from other people
law : to take (property) until a debt has been paid
See the full definition for sequester in the English Language Learners Dictionary
sequester
transitive verbse·ques·ter | \ si-ˈkwes-tər \
\Medical Definition of sequester
(Entry 1 of 2)
: to hold (as a metallic ion) in solution especially for the purpose of suppressing undesired chemical or biological activity
sequester
nounMedical Definition of sequester (Entry 2 of 2)
sequester
transitive verbse·ques·ter | \ si-ˈkwes-tər \
\sequestered; sequestering
Legal Definition of sequester
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : to place (as a jury or witness) in seclusion or isolation
Note: Juries are sequestered in order to preserve their impartiality. Witnesses are sequestered so that their testimony is not influenced by the testimony of prior witnesses.
2a : to seize especially by a writ of sequestration
b : to deposit (property) in sequestration
sequester
nounLegal Definition of sequester (Entry 2 of 2)
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