pair

SayPAIR/pɛ(ə)ɹ/UK/pɛə(ɹ)//peː/

Pluralpairs

Verbpairs, pairing, paired

21 meanings of pair

Practice

1
set of twonouncountable
Two things of the same kind that go together.
Like two matching gloves that belong together.
She bought a new pair of shoes for the wedding.
My grandma gave me a pair of gold earrings.
UsageSay a pair of shoes, two pairs of shoes.
Similarset, couple, duo, twosome
Note
2
two-part objectnouncountable
Used to talk about one thing made of two joined parts, like pants or scissors.
Like how we say one piece of clothing with two legs is a single pair of pants.
He bought a new pair of jeans for the trip.
She grabbed a pair of scissors from the drawer.
UsageSay a pair of scissors, two pairs of jeans.
3
two peoplenouncountable
Two people who are together as friends, partners, or a couple.
Like two friends who always do everything together.
The pair had been best friends since kindergarten.
They make a great pair on the dance floor.
UsageSay they make a great pair.
Similarduo, couple, twosome, team, partnership
4
verbtransitive
To put things together into groups of two.
Please pair the socks after they come out of the dryer.
The teacher paired each student with a partner.
UsageSay pair each student with a partner.
Similarmatch, couple, team, group
Oppositeseparate, split
Note
5
go well togetherverbintransitive
To go well together, like one thing matching another.
Like two flavors that taste good together.
This wine and cheese pair really nicely.
The blue scarf paired well with her coat.
UsageSay pairs well with.
Similargo (entry), match, harmonize, combine
Oppositeclash
Note
6
link devicesverbtransitive or intransitive
To connect two devices wirelessly, often using Bluetooth.
Like introducing two gadgets so they can talk to each other.
I need to pair my phone with the car speakers.
She paired the wireless headphones with her laptop.
UsageSay pair your phone with the speaker.
Similarconnect, link, sync
Oppositeunpair, disconnect
Note

Less common meanings

7
one of twonouncountable
One of the two things that go together to make a pair.
Like one shoe that needs its match to be useful.
I found one glove but can't locate its pair.
This earring lost its pair somewhere in the move.
UsageSay I can't find its pair.
Similarmate, match, partner, twin, counterpart
Note
8
pokernouncountable
In poker, two cards that have the same number or value.
Like holding two cards that match, such as two sevens.
She won the hand with a pair of kings.
A low pair beat his high card at the table.
UsageSay a pair of kings.
Note
9
verbtransitive
To mate with one partner, or to put two animals together to mate.
The breeder decided to pair the two champion dogs.
They paired the mare with a strong stallion.
UsageSay pair one dog with another.
Similarmate, breed, couple
10
nouncountable
An agreement between two politicians from opposite sides that neither will vote, so their absences cancel out.
Two lawmakers from rival parties agreed to a pair, so neither voted.
A pair let her skip the vote without changing the result.
Note
11
verbintransitive
To agree with someone on the other side that neither of you will vote on a question.
Two senators from opposite parties agreed to pair, so both skipped the vote.
He offered to pair with a member from across the aisle.
Note
12
two gamesnouncolloquialcountable
Two baseball games played by the same two teams on the same day.
The Tigers took both games of the pair on Saturday.
Rain delayed the second game of the pair until evening.
UsageSay split the pair.
Similardoubleheader
13
rowing boatnouncountable
A racing rowing boat for two people, where each person uses one oar.
The two rowers pushed their pair across the line first.
She and her partner launched their pair onto the lake at dawn.
Note
14
breastsnounslangcountable
A woman's breasts, especially in casual or rude talk.
He got caught staring at her pair and turned bright red.
He whistled at the poster and said she had a nice pair.
Note
15
testiclesnounslangcountable
A slang word for a man's two testicles.
Catchers wear a cup to protect their pair.
Stop being such a coward and grow a pair.
UsageUsed in grow a pair, a rude way to tell someone to be brave.
Note
16
work animalsnouncountable
Two work animals joined together to pull something, like oxen in a yoke.
Like two horses tied side by side to pull one cart.
The farmer drove a pair of oxen across the field.
A strong pair of horses pulled the heavy wagon uphill.
Similarteam, yoke, span
17
cricketnouncountable
In cricket, scoring zero in both of your turns batting during a two-innings match.
He made a pair in his very first Test.
Falling for a pair ruined her debut match.
Note
18
nounarchaic
A group or set of things that are alike or go together.
It would never do, you know, for me to be plunging myself into poverty and shabbiness and love in one room up three pair of stairs, and all that sort of thing.
1842, Charles Dickens, “Comprises, among Other Important Matters, Pecksniffian and Architectural, an Exact Relation of the Progress Made by…Here, pair means a set, so three pair of stairs means three flights of stairs.
Thou lieſt; I ha’ nothing buy my ſkin, / And my cloaths; my ſword here, and my ſelf; / Two Crowns in my pocket; two pair of Cards; / And three falſe Dice: I can ſwim like a fiſh / Raſcal, nothing to hinder me.
c. 1622, John Fletcher, Philip MassingerHere, pair means a set, so two pair of cards means two decks of cards.
Note
19
verbobsoletetransitive
To make something worse, or to get worse.
'No faith so fast', quoth she, 'but flesh does pair'
1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie QueeneHere, pair means to grow weaker or worse.
Why dreghis þou þis dole, & deris þi seluyn? / Lefe of þis Langore, as my lefe brother, / Þat puttes þe to payne and peires þi sight.
a. 1376?, Sir Hugh Eglintoun (uncertain), The “Gest Hystoriale” of the Destruction of TroyHere, peires means makes worse, so the grief is weakening your sight.
Note
20
nouncolloquial
In baseball, one play in which the fielding team gets two players from the other team out.
21
noun
In a machine, two parts joined so that each can move against the other in only one set way.

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of pair apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origins

Meanings 1–18

From Latin "paria" meaning "equals", which came into English through Old French "paire".

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

English pair ultimately derives from Latin paria, meaning equals. en.wiktionary.org
The Latin word reached English through Old French paire. en.wiktionary.org

Meaning 19

From Middle English "pairen", a shortened form of "apeiren", which came from Old French and ultimately Late Latin "peioro".

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

Pair derives from Middle English pairen, shortened from apeiren. en.wiktionary.org
The earlier form came through Old French and ultimately derives from Late Latin peioro. en.wiktionary.org