series

Noun

series (plural series or (obsolete) serieses)

1. A number of things that follow on one after the other or are connected one after the other.
   • A series of seemingly inconsequential events led cumulatively to the fall of the company.
   • When Timothy and Julia hurried up the staircase to the bedroom floor, where a considerable commotion was taking place, Tim took Barry Leach with him.[…]. The captive made no resistance and came not only quietly but in a series of eager little rushes like a timid dog on a choke chain.1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 19, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC

   Synonyms:

   chain, line, sequence, stream, succession, array, procession, consecution, string, train

2. A television or radio program consisting of several episodes that are broadcast at regular intervals.
   • Friends was one of the most successful television series in recent years.

   Synonyms:

   show, program

3. (UK) Synonym of season (“one of the groups of episodes that together make up a whole series”).
   • I enjoyed the third series of Friends.

   Synonyms:

   season

4. The sequence of partial sums ∑ᵢ₌₁ⁿa_i of a given sequence aᵢ.
   • The harmonic series has been much studied.
5. A group of matches between two sides, with the aim being to win more matches than the opposition.
   • The Blue Jays are playing the Yankees in a four-game series.
6. The optional taxonomic rank above order/subseries, but below superorder.
7. The optional taxonomic rank above group, but below epifamily.
8. A subdivision of a genus, a taxonomic rank below that of section (and subsection) but above that of species.
9. A parcel of rough diamonds of assorted qualities.
10. A set of consonants that share a particular phonetic or phonological feature.
11. (dated) A period, stretch of time.
    • A series of ill health, however, rendered it expedient for him to return to England1806, The Authentic Memoirs of Lord Nelson
    • Is it credible that everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power, constitute only a part, and such a small part, of future punishment; and such too, as, after a series of torment, must, next to being made happy, be the most acceptable thing to befall them?1826, Charles Buck, “Destructionists”, in A Theological Dictionary