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pair

   Also found in: Medical, Legal, Financial, Acronyms, Idioms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.02 sec.
pair  (pâr)
n. pl. pair or pairs
1. Two corresponding persons or items, similar in form or function and matched or associated: a pair of shoes.
2. One object composed of two joined, similar parts that are dependent upon each other: a pair of pliers.
3.
a. Two persons who are married, engaged, or dating.
b. Two persons who have something in common and are considered together: a pair of hunters.
c. Two mated animals.
d. Two animals joined together in work.
4. Games Two playing cards of the same denomination.
5. Two members of a deliberative body with opposing opinions on a given issue who agree to abstain from voting on the issue, thereby offsetting each other.
6. Chemistry An electron pair.
v. paired, pair·ing, pairs
v.tr.
1. To arrange in sets of two; couple.
2. To join in a pair; mate.
3. To provide a partner for.
v.intr.
1. To form pairs or a pair.
2. To join in marriage; mate.

[Middle English, from Old French paire, from Latin paria, equals, pl. of pr, a pair, from pr, equal; see per-2 in Indo-European roots.]
Usage Note: The noun pair can be followed by a singular or plural verb. The singular is always used when pair denotes the set taken as a single entity: This pair of shoes is on sale. A plural verb is used when the members are considered as individuals: The pair are working more harmoniously now. After a number other than one, pair itself can be either singular or plural, but the plural is now more common: She bought six pairs (or pair) of stockings.

pair1
n pl pairs functioning as singular or plural, pair
1. two identical or similar things matched for use together a pair of socks
2. two persons, animals, things, etc., used or grouped together a pair of horses a pair of scoundrels
3. an object considered to be two identical or similar things joined together a pair of trousers
4. two people joined in love or marriage
5. (Life Sciences & Allied Applications / Zoology) a male and a female animal of the same species, esp such animals kept for breeding purposes
6. (Law / Parliamentary Procedure) Parliamentary procedure
a.  two opposed members who both agree not to vote on a specified motion or for a specific period of time
b.  the agreement so made
7. (Group Games / Card Games) two playing cards of the same rank or denomination a pair of threes
8. one member of a matching pair I can't find the pair to this glove
9. (Team Sports / Cricket) Cricket short for a pair of spectacles (see spectacles (sense 2))
10. (Team Sports / Rowing) Rowing See pair-oar
11. Brit and US dialect a group or set of more than two
12. (Mathematics) Logic Maths
a.  a set with two members
b.  an ordered set with two members
vb
1. (often foll by off) to arrange or fall into groups of twos
2. to group or be grouped in matching pairs to pair socks
3. to join or be joined in marriage; mate or couple
4. (Law / Parliamentary Procedure) (when tr, usually passive) Parliamentary procedure to form or cause to form a pair 18 members were paired for the last vote See also pairs
[from Old French paire, from Latin paria equal (things), from pār equal]
Usage: Like other collective nouns, pair takes a singular or a plural verb according to whether it is seen as a unit or as a collection of two things: the pair are said to dislike each other; a pair of good shoes is essential

pair2
adj
a Scot word for poor

Pair two things, persons, or animals.
Examples: pair of open lips, 1647; of mules (about thirty, for carrying tin); of oars (pair of rowers), 1598; of organs (music), 1493; of playing cards, 1530; of spurs, 1375; of stairs (a flight), 1530; of tinminers (ten men).
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.pairpair - a set of two similar things considered as a unit
Tweedledee and Tweedledum, Tweedledum and Tweedledee - any two people who are hard to tell apart
set - a group of things of the same kind that belong together and are so used; "a set of books"; "a set of golf clubs"; "a set of teeth"
2.pairpair - two items of the same kind          
fellow, mate - one of a pair; "he lost the mate to his shoe"; "one eye was blue but its fellow was brown"
2, II, two, deuce - the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
doubleton - (bridge) a pair of playing cards that are the only cards in their suit in the hand dealt to a player
3.pair - two people considered as a unit
assemblage, gathering - a group of persons together in one place
couple, twosome, duet, duo - a pair who associate with one another; "the engaged couple"; "an inseparable twosome"
yoke - a pair of draft animals joined by a yoke; "pulled by a yoke of oxen"
4.pair - a poker hand with 2 cards of the same value
poker hand - the 5 cards held in a game of poker
Verb1.pair - form a pair or pairs; "The two old friends paired off"
unite, unify - act in concert or unite in a common purpose or belief
2.pairpair - bring two objects, ideas, or people together; "This fact is coupled to the other one"; "Matchmaker, can you match my daughter with a nice young man?"; "The student was paired with a partner for collaboration on the project"
match - give or join in marriage
mismate - provide with an unsuitable mate
mismatch - match badly; match two objects or people that do not go together
bring together, join - cause to become joined or linked; "join these two parts so that they fit together"
3.pair - occur in pairs
geminate, pair - arrange in pairs; "Pair these numbers"
occur - to be found to exist; "sexism occurs in many workplaces"; "precious stones occur in a large area in Brazil"
4.pair - arrange in pairs; "Pair these numbers"
arrange, set up - put into a proper or systematic order; "arrange the books on the shelves in chronological order"
geminate, pair - occur in pairs
5.pair - engage in sexual intercourse; "Birds mate in the Spring"
nick - mate successfully; of livestock
conjoin, join - make contact or come together; "The two roads join here"
bonk, do it, eff, fuck, get it on, get laid, have a go at it, have intercourse, have it away, have it off, have sex, be intimate, lie with, roll in the hay, screw, sleep together, sleep with, make love, hump, jazz, love, bed, bang, make out, know - have sexual intercourse with; "This student sleeps with everyone in her dorm"; "Adam knew Eve"; "Were you ever intimate with this man?"
tread - mate with; "male birds tread the females"
service, serve - mate with; "male animals serve the females for breeding purposes"
deflower, ruin - deprive of virginity; "This dirty old man deflowered several young girls in the village"
mount, ride - copulate with; "The bull was riding the cow"
breed, cover - copulate with a female, used especially of horses; "The horse covers the mare"
bugger, sodomise, sodomize - practice anal sex upon
sodomise, sodomize - copulate with an animal

pair
noun
1. set, match, combination, doublet, matched set, two of a kind a pair of socks
2. couple, brace, duo, twosome A pair of teenage boys were arrested.
verb
team, match (up), join, couple, marry, wed, twin, put together, bracket, yoke, pair off Each trainee is paired with an experienced worker.
pair off or up get together, unite, team up, link up, join up, form a couple, make a twosome We paired up to dance. She was trying to pair me off with her brother.
Usage: Like other collective nouns, pair takes a singular or a plural verb according to whether it is seen as a unit or as a collection of two things: the pair are said to dislike each other; a pair of good shoes is essential.
Translations
pair [pɛəʳ]
A. N
1. (= set) [of gloves, shoes, socks, etc] → par m
these socks are not a pairestos calcetines no son del mismo par
a pair of binocularsunos prismáticos
a pair of glasses or spectaclesunas gafas, unos anteojos
we need another pair of handsnecesitamos otro par de manos
I've only got one pair of handssólo tengo dos manos
a pair of pyjamasun pijama
a pair of scissorsunas tijeras, un par de tijeras
six pairs of scissorsseis tijeras
a pair of trousersun pantalón, unos pantalones, un par de pantalones
2. (= group of 2 things) → pareja f
a pair of acesuna pareja de ases
to arrange in pairs [+ glasses, chairs] → colocar de dos en dos; [+ related words, pictures] → colocar en parejas
see also heel 1
3. [of people] (= group of 2) → par m; (= couple) → pareja f
a pair of teenage boys were smokingun par de quincañeros estaban fumando
a pair of identical twinsuna pareja de gemelos
get out of my sight, the pair of you!¡fuera de mi vista, los dos!
the happy pairla feliz pareja, los novios
to do sth in pairshacer algo en parejas or de dos en dos
those two make a right pair!¡vaya par!, ¡vaya pareja!
they make an unlikely pairforman una insólita pareja, hacen or forman una extraña pareja
4. [of animals, birds] → pareja f
a carriage and pairun carruaje con dos caballos, un landó con dos caballos
5. (= counterpart)
5.1. (gen) → pareja f
can I try on the pair to this please?¿puedo probarme la pareja, por favor?
5.2. (Brit) (Parl) uno de los dos miembros de partidos opuestos que se ponen de acuerdo para ausentarse de una votación y, de esa forma, anularse mutuamente
6. (Sport) pairsdobles mpl
pairs skatingpatinaje m en parejas
B. VT
1. (Zool) → aparear
2. (= put together) [+ socks, gloves] → emparejar
long skirts paired with knitted jacketsfaldas fpl largas a juego or haciendo juego con rebecas de punto
ginger biscuits are delicious paired with glasses of lemonadelas galletas de jengibre están buenísimas acompañadas de vasos de limonada
to pair sb with sb: trainees will be paired with experienced managersa los aprendices se les pondrá formando pareja con gerentes con experiencia
I was paired with Henry in the general knowledge competitionme pusieron formando pareja con or de compañero de Henry en el concurso de cultura general
C. VI
1. (gen) → formar pareja(s) (with con) when a Y chromosome pairs with an X chromosomecuando el cromosoma Y forma pareja con el cromosoma X
beer pairs well with many New Zealand dishesla cerveza acompaña bien a muchos platos de Nueva Zelanda
2. (Zool) → aparearse (with con) → formar pareja(s) (with con)
D. CPD pair bonding Nunión f de pareja, emparejamiento m
pair off
A. VT + ADV
1. (as couple) → emparejar
everyone was paired offtodo el mundo estaba emparejado or tenía pareja
they are always trying to pair her offsiempre están intentando buscarle pareja
2. (= group in twos) → agrupar por parejas
people are paired off according to their level of competencese agrupa a las personas por parejas de acuerdo con su nivel de aptitud
B. VI + ADV
1. (as a couple, team) → formar pareja(s)
2. (Zool) → aparearse, formar pareja
pair up
A. VI + ADVformar pareja(s)
pair up with the person next to youforme pareja con la persona de al lado
B. VT + ADV [+ socks, shoes, gloves] → emparejar; [+ people] → poner formando pareja
in the final I was paired up with a French teacherme pusieron formando pareja con un profesor de francés para la final

pair [ˈpɛər] n
[shoes, gloves, socks, earrings] → paire f
a pair of shoes → une paire de chaussures
a pair of socks → une paire de chaussettes
a pair of earrings → une paire de boucles d'oreilles
a pair of scissors → une paire de ciseaux
a pair of trousers → un pantalon
a pair of jeans → un jean
a nice pair of legs
What a nice pair of legs! → Quelles jolies jambes!
an extra pair of hands
She was glad of an extra pair of hands → Elle était contente de disposer d'une paire de bras supplémentaires.
to be a safe pair of hands (British) (= reliable person) → être quelqu'un de sûr, être une personne sûre
He is seen as a safe pair of hands → On le considère comme quelqu'un de sûr.
(= two people) → paire f (= couple) → couple m
in pairs → à deux, par deux
We work in pairs → Nous travaillons à deux., Nous travaillons par deux.
In some neighbourhoods the policemen walk around in pairs → Dans certains quartiers, les policiers font leur ronde à deux., Dans certains quartiers, les policiers font leur ronde par deux.
pair off
vi (gen)se mettre par deux; (romantically) to pair off with sb → se mettre avec qn
vt sep (= put in twos) → mettre par deux; (romantically)apparier
pair up
vi [team up] → faire équipe
to pair up with sb → faire équipe avec qn
vt sep (= put together) → mettre ensemble

pair
n
(of gloves, shoes, people)Paar nt; (of animals, cards)Pärchen nt; (hum sl: = breasts) → Vorbau m (inf), → Dinger pl (sl); these socks are not a pairdiese beiden Socken gehören nich zusammen; a pair of scissorseine Schere; six pairs of scissorssechs Scheren; a new pair (of trousers)eine neue (Hose); (of shoes)(ein Paar) neue; I’ve lost my scissors, could I borrow your pair?ich habe meine Schere verloren, kannst du mir deine leihen?; I’ve only got one pair of handsich habe auch nur zwei Hände; he has a useful pair of hands (boxer) → er ist ein guter Boxer; to be or have a safe pair of handszuverlässig sein; a huge pair of eyesein riesiges Augenpaar; she has a great pair of legssie hat tolle Beine (inf); in pairspaarweise; hunt, arrive, go outzu zweit; be seatedin Zweiergruppen; they’re a pair of rascalsdas sind vielleicht zwei Lausejungen; what a pair of fools we are!wir (beide) sind vielleicht dumm!; you’re a fine pair you are! (iro)ihr seid mir (vielleicht) ein sauberes Pärchen (iro)
pairs sing or pl the pairs (Skating) → Paarlauf m; (Rowing) → Zweier m; in the pairsim Paarlauf/Zweier
vtin Paaren or paarweise anordnen; I was paired with Bob for the next roundin der nächsten Runde musste ich mit Bob ein Paar bilden; to be paired against somebodygegen jdn spielen

pair [pɛəʳ]
1. n (of gloves, shoes) → paio; (of people) → coppia
a pair of scissors/trousers → un paio di forbici/pantaloni
arranged in pairs → disposti/e a due a due
ordered pair (Math) → coppia ordinata
2. vtaccoppiare, appaiare
pair off
1. vt + advtrovar marito (or moglie) a
2. vi + adv to pair off (with sb)fare coppia (con qn)
pair up vi + adv to pair up (with sb)mettersi in coppia (con qn)

pair [pɛəʳ]
1. n (of gloves, shoes) → paio; (of people) → coppia
a pair of scissors/trousers → un paio di forbici/pantaloni
arranged in pairs → disposti/e a due a due
ordered pair (Math) → coppia ordinata
2. vtaccoppiare, appaiare
pair off
1. vt + advtrovar marito (or moglie) a
2. vi + adv to pair off (with sb)fare coppia (con qn)
pair up vi + adv to pair up (with sb)mettersi in coppia (con qn)

pair
n pair [peə]
1 a set of two of the same thing which are (intended to be) used etc together a pair of shoes/gloves. paar زَوْج чифт pár par das Paar ζευγάρι par paar جفت pari paire זוּג जोड़े par (egy) pár sepasang par, samstæða paio 1組み (두 개로 된) 한 쌍, 한 벌 pora pāris pasang paar par para par pereche парные предметы, пара pár par par par คู่ çift 一雙 пара جوڑا đôi
2 a single thing made up of two parts a pair of scissors; a pair of pants. paar زَوْج مِن нещо, съставено от две части jedny (např. nůžky, kalhoty) en saks; et par bukser (etwas Zweiteiliges) αντικείμενο με δύο σκέλη par (mitmus) چیز دو جزئی kaksiosainen esine paire זוּג जोड़ी spariti olló, nadrág stb sesuatu yang terdiri dari 2 bagian par; stykki paio 2つの部分からなるもの 한 개(자루, 벌) pāris sepasang paar par para par pereche вещь, состоящая из двух частей jedny (nohavice, nožnice ap.) par par par ของที่เป็นคู่ (iki parçadan oluşan) bir (şey) 由兩部分組成的單件物品 річ, що складається з двох частин; парний предмет کوئي ايک شئ جو دو اجزاء کو ملا کر بنائي گئي ہو cái
3 two people, animals etc, often one of either sex, who are thought of together for some reason a pair of giant pandas; John and James are the guilty pair. paar زَوْج، إثْنان، زَوْجان двойка pár, dvojice par das Paar ζευγάρι, ζεύγος pareja paar زوج pari couple זוּג जोड़ी, युगल जैसे par pár sepasang (kærustu)par coppia つがい 한 쌍 pora, porelė pāris pasangan paar (kjæreste-/ekte)par dwójka, para par cuplu, pereche пара pár par par par คนหรือสตว์ที่ çift, ikili 一對 пара; подружжя جوڑي cặp
v
to make into a pair She was paired with my brother in the tennis match. saamvoeg يُرَتِّبُ زَوْجا образувам двойка spárovat sætte sammen med paarweise ordnen ζευγαρώνω formar pareja con; emparejar paari(meheks) panema جفت کردن parittaa faire la paire לְזַווֵג जोड़ा बनाना, या लगाना združiti (se)u par párosít memasang para abbinare, appaiare 組む 쌍을 이루다 suporuoti salikt pārī dipasangkan een paar doen vormen ordne parvis; pare zestawiać pary emparelhar a face/a forma o pereche (cu) соединять парами utvoriť pár združiti v par upariti para ihop (samman) จับคู่ eşleştirmek 成對,配對 добирати пари; одружуватися جوڑا بنانا ghép cặp

pair is singular: That pair of trousers needs mending ; There is a pair of gloves on the table .


pair زوجان pár par Paar ζεύγος par pari paire par paio ひと組 한 쌍 paar par para par пара par คู่ çift đôi 一对


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There was once a shoemaker, who worked very hard and was very honest: but still he could not earn enough to live upon; and at last all he had in the world was gone, save just leather enough to make one pair of shoes.
It is a universal rule that each of a pair of opposites of this type has reference to that to which the particular 'positive' is natural.
Geppetto makes Pinocchio a new pair of feet, and sells his coat to buy him an A-B-C book
 
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