Meaning & use
seals
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“seals” is a form of “seal”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounplural
Sleek sea mammals with flippers that swim well, feed on fish and rest on rocks or ice.
Grammar: Plural of seal: seals bask on the beach.
Patterns
- colony of seals
Seals lay on the rocks near the harbor.
We took a boat trip to see the seals.
Young seals are born with soft white fur.
nounplural
Stamps or marks pressed onto a document or envelope to show it is genuine, or closings that keep something tightly shut.
Grammar: Plural of seal in this sense: check the seals on the jars.
Patterns
- break the seals
The royal seals were pressed into red wax.
Check that the seals on the windows are tight.
The package arrived with its seals intact.
verbtransitive
Closes something firmly so air, liquid or contents cannot get in or out; third person singular of seal.
Grammar: Takes an object: she seals the envelope.
Patterns
- seals something with something
- seals something up
She seals each envelope with a sticker.
This tape seals the box securely.
The coating seals the wood against moisture.
Word forms
| singular | seal |
|---|
Common combinations
- colony of seals
- A colony of seals lives on the island.
- harbor seals
- Harbor seals often follow fishing boats.
- broken seals
- The inspector noticed broken seals on the crate.
- seals the deal
- A handshake seals the deal.
- seals an envelope
- He licks and seals an envelope.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sea lions
- Sea lions have visible ear flaps and can walk on their flippers, so they look different from true seals.
- stamps
- Stamps is broader and simply means pressed marks, while seals implies an official guarantee.
- closes
- Closes does not suggest airtight security the way seals does.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: seals or sea lions? seals or ceils?
seals vs sea lions
Sea lions are related but have small external ears, whereas seals have only ear holes.
seals vs ceils
This is a mistaken spelling that sounds the same as seals. The word for the animal and the verb is spelled seals.
Practice
Which sentence uses seals as a verb?
Choose one answer.
In the second sentence seals follows the subject tape and takes an object, so it is a verb. In the others it is a plural noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “seals”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.