# sequence

/ˈsikwəns/ (US) · /sˈiːkwəns/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/sequence
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. order of events

noun · CEFR B2 · Academic

the order in which things happen or should happen.

For teachers: the particular order in which related events, movements, or things follow each other.

- The police are trying to find out the exact sequence of events that led to the accident.
- The historian meticulously reconstructed the sequence of diplomatic failures that preceded the declaration of war, highlighting the role of miscommunication.

### 2. mathematical pattern

noun · CEFR B2 · Academic · Technical

a list of numbers or objects that follow a specific rule or order.

For teachers: an ordered list of objects, typically indexed with natural numbers, following a specific mathematical rule.

- The teacher asked the students to find the next number in the sequence.
- The Fibonacci sequence is a famous example of a numerical pattern where each number is the sum of the two preceding ones.

### 3. film or video

noun · CEFR B2

a part of a movie that shows one particular event or scene.

For teachers: a series of shots that depict a single action or style in a film or television production.

- The opening sequence of the movie was filmed in the mountains.
- The director spent three weeks editing the dream sequence to ensure the transitions felt fluid and surreal for the audience.

### 4. musical repetition

noun · CEFR C1 · Technical

a short piece of music that is repeated at a higher or lower pitch.

For teachers: a series of musical phrases where a theme is repeated at different pitch levels.

- The composer used a rising sequence to make the music feel more exciting.
- The baroque concerto features a complex harmonic sequence that builds tension before resolving into the final major chord.

### 5. to arrange in order

verb · CEFR B2 · Academic

to put things into a specific order.

For teachers: to arrange elements or data into a particular order or succession.

- The software allows you to sequence your photos by the date they were taken.
- The algorithm is designed to sequence the incoming data packets to ensure they are processed in the correct chronological order.

### 6. biological mapping

verb · CEFR C1 · Technical

to find the order of chemicals in a piece of DNA.

For teachers: to determine the order of monomers in a biological polymer, such as bases in a nucleic acid.

- Scientists have finally finished sequencing the entire human genome.
- By sequencing the viral DNA, researchers were able to identify the specific mutation responsible for the increased transmission rate.

## Examples

- The computer follows a specific sequence of instructions.
- The detective tried to reconstruct the exact sequence of events that led to the robbery.
- By analyzing the DNA sequence, the researchers were able to identify the specific genetic mutation responsible for the rare condition affecting the local population.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.