siege Meaning, Definition & Usage

Siege noun

Etymology

OE. sege, OF. siege, F. siège a seat, a siege; cf. It. seggia, seggio, zedio, a seat, asseggio, assedio, a siege, F. assiéger to besiege, It. & LL. assediare, L. obsidium a siege, besieging; all ultimately fr. L. sedere to sit. See Sit, and cf. See, n.

Definitions

1. A seat; especially, a royal seat; a throne. Obs. "Upon the very siege of justice." Shak.

   A stately siege of sovereign majesty, And thereon sat a woman gorgeous gay. Spenser.

   In our great hall there stood a vacant chair . . . And Merlin called it "The siege perilous." Tennyson.

2. Hence, place or situation; seat. Obs.

   Ah! traitorous eyes, come out of your shameless siege forever. Painter (Palace of Pleasure).

3. Rank; grade; station; estimation. Obs.

   I fetch my life and being From men of royal siege. Shak.

4. Passage of excrements; stool; fecal matter. Obs.

   The siege of this mooncalf. Shak.

5. The sitting of an army around or before a fortified place for the purpose of compelling the garrison to surrender; the surrounding or investing of a place by an army, and approaching it by passages and advanced works, which cover the besiegers from the enemy's fire. See the Note under Blockade.
6. Hence, a continued attempt to gain possession.

   Love stood the siege, and would not yield his breast. Dryden.

7. The floor of a glass-furnace.
8. A workman's bench. Knught.

Siege transitive verb

Definitions

1. To besiege; to beset. R.

   Through all the dangers that can siege The life of man. Buron.