Difference Between Chair and Seat

Chair and seat are two words used as synonyms, and people do not hesitate to use them interchangeably. ‘Take a chair’ and ‘have a seat’ are customary sentences when we see someone around us standing. Indeed, when used in sentences in this manner, there is hardly a difference between a chair and a seat. But there are subtle differences that will be talked about in this article.

Have you ever wondered why people talk about the material used in making a chair and not a seat? This is enough to convince you that chair is the contraption that is meant to support a person in a sitting position while the space in a chair that is used to place one’s butts on is called a seat. A chair may be small or large or may be made of iron or fiber. It is common to refer to words like folding and portable in connection with chairs but never do we hear a seat being portable.

Be seated is one request you must have heard, also often made to others. Here, seated is a verb that refers to the action of sitting down on the seat in a chair. Again, it is seating system that is looked after before an important meet or a conference. This is necessary to make sure that the chief guest and other VIP’s get seated according to their stature.

There are other uses of the word seat, as in, ‘seat in government’ and ‘seat of higher learning’. ‘Seat in government’ often means a birth in the cabinet, while ‘seat of higher learning’ refers to a university or institute where quality education is imparted. Chair, on the other hand has limited uses though, it is used more often than seat in politics to refer to the leader’s position in a government.