sector

1 of 2

noun

sec·​tor ˈsek-tər How to pronounce sector (audio)
-ˌtȯr
1
a
: a geometric figure bounded by two radii and the included arc of a circle
b(1)
: a subdivision of a defensive military position
(2)
: a portion of a military front or area of operation
c
: an area or portion resembling a sector
bilingual sector of townDavid Kleinberg
d
: a sociological, economic, or political subdivision of society
cooperation between the public and private sectorsPeter Chapman
2
: a mathematical instrument consisting of two rulers connected at one end by a joint and marked with several scales
3
: a subdivision of a track on a computer disk
sectoral
ˈsek-t(ə-)rəl
adjective

sector

2 of 2

verb

sec·​tor ˈsek-tər How to pronounce sector (audio)
sectored; sectoring ˈsek-t(ə-)riŋ How to pronounce sector (audio)

transitive verb

: to divide into or furnish with sectors

Examples of sector in a Sentence

Noun He was assigned to the northern sector. Data is stored on the disk in 512-byte sectors.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Big deal Morgan Stanley’s E-Trade released data from its monthly sector rotation study. Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 4 Mar. 2024 Tech sector employment is tighter still, with industry group CompTIA calculating it as 2.3 percent based on US government data. Lauren Goode, WIRED, 4 Mar. 2024 Such detours could add as much as a month in transit time, delaying the delivery of goods and further disrupting international commerce — a sector already grappling with the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic, rising inflation and disruptions caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine. Jennifer Hassan, Washington Post, 3 Mar. 2024 On Monday, the Institute for Supply Management is expected to announce that its service sector index showed growth again last month but at a moderately slower pace, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg. Paul Davidson, USA TODAY, 3 Mar. 2024 First, its tech sector peers ushered one artificial intelligence innovation after another into the market, even as Apple offered nothing of its own. Samanth Subramanian, Quartz, 2 Mar. 2024 In early 2023, Japan and the Netherlands agreed to limit the export of advanced chip making equipment to Chinese companies, aligning themselves with U.S. efforts to constrain China’s chip sector. Lionel Lim, Fortune Asia, 2 Mar. 2024 While current efforts primarily focus on regulatory challenges, other aspects of the energy sector could benefit from AI. Hudson Hollister, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 Mounting problems Fisker’s problems, many of them internal, are also the product of an EV sector in disarray as carmakers are hit by a collection of headwinds, including falling demand from buyers in the wake of low gas prices and a harsher economic environment. Ryan Hogg, Fortune Europe, 1 Mar. 2024
Verb
Hipgnosis Songs Fund, the music-catalog firm that has faced investor criticism, moved to soothe shareholders Thursday, saying new advisers had endorsed the valuation of its songs and pointing to sector dealmaking at robust prices. Julie Steinberg, WSJ, 8 Dec. 2022 The country has lost over 900,000 jobs since the start of the pandemic, with women, young people and the services sector the most damaged. Alessandra Migliaccio, Fortune, 30 Apr. 2021 Hundreds of thousands of students from overseas have made the Australian universities sector one of the nation's biggest earners of foreign currency. Rod McGuirk, Star Tribune, 7 Oct. 2020 The last few days saw hotels, resorts, and cruise lines sector outperform information technology by enough to break a long-lasting trend. Andrew Stuttaford, National Review, 11 Sep. 2020 The recent gains led RBC Capital Markets analyst Steven Arthur to downgrade his rating to sector perform from outperform Friday. Sandrine Rastello, Bloomberg.com, 31 May 2020 The professional and business services sector lost 6,900 jobs; the next biggest losses were 1,700 in manufacturing and 1,600 in finance. Mark Williams, Cincinnati.com, 6 Mar. 2020 Network planning is basically about which sectors an airline will fly in, and at what frequency. Niharika Sharma, Quartz India, 6 Feb. 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sector.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Late Latin, from Latin, cutter, from secare to cut — more at saw

First Known Use

Noun

1570, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1884, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of sector was in 1570

Dictionary Entries Near sector

Cite this Entry

“Sector.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sector. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

sector

noun
sec·​tor
ˈsek-tər,
-ˌtȯ(ə)r
1
a
: the part of a circle included between two radii
b
: an area assigned to a military commander to defend
2
: a part of society
the public sector
the industrial sector
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!