Meaning & use
sofa
Last updated
UK/ˈsəʊfə/
US/ˈsoʊfə/
Meaning
nouncountable
A long, soft piece of furniture with a back and arms, for two or more people to sit on.
Grammar: Countable: a sofa, two sofas.
Patterns
- sit on a sofa
- a comfortable sofa
They sat on the sofa and watched a movie.
We bought a new sofa for the living room.
The cat is sleeping on the sofa.
Word forms
| plural | sofas |
|---|
Common combinations
- sit on the sofa
- He sat on the sofa and read the newspaper.
- a comfortable sofa
- This is a very comfortable sofa.
- a sofa bed
- The sofa bed turns into a double bed.
- a leather sofa
- They have a black leather sofa in the living room.
- a three-seater sofa
- We need a three-seater sofa for the family.
Synonyms and how they differ
Commonly confused: sofa or sofa bed?
sofa vs sofa bed
A sofa that can be folded out into a bed; not just any sofa.
Practice
Which word best completes the sentence? 'We bought a new ___ for the living room.'
Choose one answer.
'Sofa' is the correct singular noun here. 'Sofa's' is possessive, 'sofas' is plural, and 'sofa bed' is a specific type, not the general word.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sofa”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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