# pair

Pronunciation: say "PAIR" US /pɛ(ə)ɹ/, UK /pɛə(ɹ)/, AUS /peː/

## Noun

1. Two similar or identical things considered together and treated as a single set.
   - Simple: Two things of the same kind that go together.
   - _The gloves came as a pair, both lined with soft wool._
   - _He kept the salt and pepper grinders as a matching pair on the shelf._
2. Used with binary nouns (those naming a single object with two joined parts) to indicate one such object or, in the plural, several.
   - Simple: Used to talk about one thing made of two joined parts, like pants or scissors.
   - _He owns at least ten pairs of pants._
   - _Could you hand me that pair of pliers?_
3. Two people who function together through a relationship, partnership, or ongoing friendship.
   - Simple: Two people who are together as friends, partners, or a couple.
   - _The pair ran the bakery together for thirty years._
   - _As a pair, the detectives solved cases no one else could._
7. Either one of the two matching items that together form a set.
   - Simple: One of the two things that go together to make a pair.
   - _She kept searching for the pair to her favorite cufflink._
   - _Without its pair, a single chopstick is nearly useless._
8. In poker, two cards of the same rank, or a hand whose highest-ranking combination consists of two such cards.
   - Simple: In poker, two cards that have the same number or value.
   - _He bluffed his way to the pot holding only a pair of fives._
   - _He went all in with just a pair of fours and lost to a straight._
10. In a parliament, an arrangement in which two members of opposing parties both agree not to vote, so that one's absence cancels out the other's.
   - Simple: An agreement between two politicians from opposite sides that neither will vote, so their absences cancel out.
   - _The backbenchers arranged a pair before heading home for the recess._
   - _Because of the pair, neither side gained any advantage from the absences._
12. Two games played on the same day between the same teams, also called a doubleheader. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: Two baseball games played by the same two teams on the same day.
   - _The visiting team dropped both ends of the pair to the league leaders._
   - _Our team split Sunday's pair, losing the opener but winning the nightcap._
13. A racing shell crewed by two sweep rowers, each pulling a single oar.
   - Simple: A racing rowing boat for two people, where each person uses one oar.
   - _Their pair held a narrow lead through the middle of the race._
   - _Moving from a four into a pair forced the rowers to sharpen their balance._
14. A woman's breasts, especially as the object of crude or jocular slang. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A woman's breasts, especially in casual or rude talk.
   - _The locker-room banter about a coworker's pair left her deeply uncomfortable._
   - _He bragged crudely about her pair until his friends told him to stop._
15. A slang term for the testicles, treated together as a pair. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A slang word for a man's two testicles.
   - _After landing hard on the bike's crossbar, he joked that he wasn't sure he still had a pair._
   - _His teammates laughed and told him to grow a pair and jump off the high dive._
16. Two working animals harnessed or yoked together so they pull or labor as a single team.
   - Simple: Two work animals joined together to pull something, like oxen in a yoke.
   - _A matched pair of mules hauled the plow through the heavy clay._
   - _The farmer harnessed a pair of mules to pull the plow through the rocky field._
17. In cricket, a batter's score of zero, a duck, in each innings of a two-innings match.
   - Simple: In cricket, scoring zero in both of your turns batting during a two-innings match.
   - _The opener walked off with a pair after edging behind in both innings._
   - _Avoiding a pair was the only consolation in his miserable game._

## Verb

4. To arrange people or things into one or more sets of two.
   - Simple: To put things together into groups of two.
   - _Tournament rules pair the remaining players at random for each round of the final day._
   - _She paired the recruits by skill level before the drill._
5. To suit and complement one another, fitting together well as matching counterparts.
   - Simple: To go well together, like one thing matching another.
   - _Strong coffee and dark chocolate pair surprisingly well after a big dinner._
   - _That rich sauce pairs surprisingly well with grilled fish._
6. To connect two electronic devices over a wireless link, typically using a protocol such as Bluetooth.
   - Simple: To connect two devices wirelessly, often using Bluetooth.
   - _The technician helped me pair the smartwatch with my phone._
   - _Once both devices pair, audio streams to the speaker automatically._
9. Of animals, to come together or be brought together as a couple for mating.
   - Simple: To mate with one partner, or to put two animals together to mate.
   - _The kennel will pair the retriever with a registered sire next spring._
   - _Farmers carefully paired their cattle to improve the herd._
11. To agree with a member holding opposite views that both will abstain from voting on a particular question or class of questions.
   - Simple: To agree with someone on the other side that neither of you will vote on a question.
   - _Two senators chose to pair rather than interrupt their travel for a minor vote._
   - _She arranged to pair with an opponent before missing the division._

## Noun

18. A set, or a number of things that resemble one another or belong together. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: A group or set of things that are alike or go together.

## Verb

19. To make or become worse; to impair or deteriorate. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To make something worse, or to get worse.

## Other meanings

- (noun) In baseball, a single play in which the fielding side records two outs.
- (noun) In a mechanism, two elements joined so as to constrain their relative motion, named for the motion permitted, as in a turning pair or sliding pair.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–18** — Latin paria ("equals"), the neuter plural of par ("pair"), passed into Old French as paire and then into Middle English as paire. It is related to par meaning "equal."
**Meaning 19** — Late Latin peioro gave Old French empeirier, which became Middle English apeiren or empeiren. These were shortened to pairen or peiren.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/pair (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).