Sequence

'siːkwəns

nounmedium🔥Very CommonGeneral
2 meanings2 idioms/phrases3 questions

Definitions

2 meanings
1

A set of related events, movements, or things that follow each other in a particular order.

'siːkwəns

nounneutralmedium
General

A particular order in which related things follow each other.

The movie's opening sequence was breathtaking.

💡 Simply: Imagine you're making a movie. The 'sequence' is the order of the scenes. Scene 1, then scene 2, then scene 3... that's a sequence!

👶 For kids: A sequence is like a list of things that happen one after another, in a certain order.

More Examples

2

Please arrange the events in chronological sequence.

3

The steps of the experiment must be followed in a precise sequence.

How It's Used

Mathematics

"The Fibonacci sequence is a famous mathematical sequence."

Biology

"Researchers are studying the sequence of the human genome."

Music

"The song's sequence of chords was beautiful."

2

To arrange or put in a specific order.

'siːkwəns

verbneutralmedium
General

To arrange in a particular order.

The programmer sequenced the code to run efficiently.

💡 Simply: Imagine organizing your toys. To 'sequence' them is to put them in order – big to small, or by color!

👶 For kids: Sequencing means putting things in the right order, like 1, 2, 3!

More Examples

2

The genetic material was sequenced to determine the mutation.

3

The editor had to sequence the scenes to improve the flow of the film.

How It's Used

Computer Science

"The data needs to be sequenced before analysis."

Genetics

"Scientists are sequencing DNA to understand its genetic makeup."

Tip:Think of putting things in a specific 'queue' or 'line'.

Idioms & expressions

in sequence

Following in order

"The cards are arranged in sequence."

out of sequence

Not in the correct order

"The steps were taken out of sequence, causing confusion."

From Latin *sequi* 'to follow'. The word developed to mean a series of things that follow each other.

The word 'sequence' first appeared in the English language in the early 15th century, initially used to denote a series of things in time or a process.

Memory tip

Think of a 'queue' or 'series' – things happening one after the other.

Word Origin

LanguageLatin
Original meaning

"to follow"

DNA sequenceamino acid sequencein sequencesequenced dataa logical sequence

Common misspellings

sequancesequenseseqence

Usage

40%Spoken
60%Written