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# sec

noun (a sec, secs) — informal; abbreviation sec (second, secretary, secant)

«sec» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. (informal) A very short time; short for "second": "wait a sec". [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#m1)
2. Abbreviation for second (of time): 30 sec. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#m2)
3. (maths, older pupils) Short for secant, a function of an angle. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#m3)
4. Abbreviation for secretary. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#m4)
5. Sec. is a short way of writing section, a numbered part of a book or law. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#m5)

### In the lessons

In real speech: "hang on a sec", "back in a sec". In science and sport timing: "she ran 100 m in 15 sec". Phrases: just a sec, in a sec, hang on a sec.

### Examples

- Wait a sec, I'm coming! [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#x1)
- Hang on a sec, I need my coat. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#x2)
- The runner finished in 12.5 sec. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#x3)
- I'll be back in a sec. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#x4)
- The video is 45 sec long. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#x5)
- Give me a sec to think. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#x6)
- Benfey, Pantschatantra, Einleitung, Sec.201). \[Footnote: It occurs in the same chapter as the story of La Perrette, which has been traced, after Benfey, by Prof. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/#x7)

### Note

Informal in speech: "a sec" is not an exact time, just a short wait. As a unit it is exact: 60 sec = 1 minute. The usual short form in science is "s" (10 s).

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «sec» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sec/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«sec» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/sec.html) on Mova free.