Sit means to rest your weight on your bottom, usually on a chair, bench, or the ground, with your back upright and your legs bent. When you sit down at your desk to do homework, you lower yourself into the chair and stay there while you work. Dogs can sit too: when a dog sits, it rests on its haunches with its front legs straight.

The word has other meanings beyond the physical act. A court sits when it's in session and hearing cases. A committee sits when it meets to discuss business. If you sit for a portrait, you pose while an artist paints or photographs you. When something sits well with you, you feel comfortable or satisfied with it, like when a teacher's explanation finally sits well and makes sense.

You can also sit on something in the sense of waiting to decide: “Let's sit on that idea for a few days before we choose.” And when people sit tight, they wait patiently without taking action, like sitting tight during a storm until it passes.