steady

«steady» in Mova's judaism dictionary: Firm and not shaking or wobbling, like a steady ladder or… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

adjective (steady, steadier, steadiest); adverb (steadily); verb (steady, steadies, steadied, steadying)

meaning for a pupil

1) Firm and not shaking or wobbling, like a steady ladder or a steady hand. tree →

2) Happening at an even, regular rate without sudden changes, like steady rain or a steady speed. tree →

3) Calm and sensible, someone you can rely on. tree →

4) As a verb, to steady something is to hold it so it stops moving or wobbling. tree →

sense in the lessons

In maths and science, "steady" means the same rate all the time: a car moving at a steady 50 km/h covers the same distance every hour, so you can multiply speed by time. In safety, a ladder or chair must be steady before you climb, and you steady yourself by holding a rail. In stories, a steady voice shows calm courage. Phrases: "steady on!", "slow and steady wins the race", "hold it steady", "ready, steady, go!" (British start of a race), "a steady job".

examples

• Hold the ladder steady while Dad climbs up. tree →
• It rained steadily all afternoon. tree →
• The train moved at a steady speed of 80 kilometres an hour. tree →
• Her hand was steady as she poured the water. tree →
• Ready, steady, go! tree →
• He grabbed the rail to steady himself on the bus. tree →
• The plant grew at a steady rate of 2 cm a week. tree →
• Slow and steady wins the race, said the tortoise. tree →
• Slow and steady wins the race. tree →

note

Spelling: steadier, steadiest, steadied (y changes to i), but steadying keeps the y. "Steady" and "stable" are close in meaning. "Ready, steady, go" is British; Americans often say "ready, set, go". In maths problems, a steady rate means the amount changes by the same number each time, so you can use multiplication (steady 3 litres a minute for 5 minutes = 15 litres).

In the corpora

• Blowing too hard makes a recorder jump up to a shrill squeal; a soft, steady breath gives a clear note.
• A metronome is a ticking machine or app that keeps a steady beat; groups often rush when they get excited.
• Almost everyone can learn to dance with practice and by listening for the beat, the steady pulse of the music.
• Mediterranean tortoises hibernate, and owners guided by a vet keep them steady at about 5 degrees so they neither wake early nor freeze.
• "Going steady" means dating one person seriously (old-fashioned, US).

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «steady» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.