stage
/steɪdʒ
/noun
1A point, period, or step in a process or development: there is no need at this stage to give explicit details I was in the early stages of pregnancy...
- Lastly there may be a stage of exhaustion, tiredness and weakness.
- All stages of the re-entry went according to plan.
- The argument at this point proceeds in three stages.
Synonyms
phase, period, juncture, step, point, time, moment, instant, division, level
1.1A section of a journey or race: the final stage of the journey is made by coach...
- The final stage of our journey along the Lower Zambesi was sheer heaven.
- During the final stages of his journey, Nicholas swaps notes with Simon Osborne, the British kayaker who circumnavigated Britain to raise money for charity in memory of his brother Mark.
- It was the final stage of the journey and despite his tough Brooklyn upbringing he was tense and nervous.
Synonyms
part, section, portion, stretch, phase;
leg, lap, circuit
1.2Each of two or more sections of a rocket or spacecraft that have their own engines and are jettisoned in turn when their propellant is exhausted.The first, second, and third stages of the Soyuz launch vehicle fired and separated by 11 minutes into the rocket's flight....
- Russian and European engineers will work together to develop reusable liquid engines, reusable liquid stages and experimental vehicles.
- Three of the four stages exhausted their solid propellants through a single adjustable nozzle which guided the missile along its flight path.
1.3 [with modifier] Electronics A specified part of a circuit, typically one consisting of a single amplifying transistor or valve with the associated equipment: a series resistance between the headphones and the output stage...
- Shipley is also working on replacing the conventional electroless and electrolytic copper deposition stages with a single electroless copper stage.
- In one embodiment, the summing node is coupled to a summing circuit disposed between two gain stages of an error amplifier in the first circuit.
- Many laser systems consist of an oscillator followed by one or more amplifier stages.
2A raised floor or platform, typically in a theatre, on which actors, entertainers, or speakers perform: there are only two characters on stage...
- An actor gets on stage and performs and you have a moment of true inspiration.
- A properly trained voice is an asset to any actor, especially to those who perform on stage.
- Ms Carey will perform the stunt on stage at the Hull New Theatre during the run, from tonight until Saturday.
Synonyms
platform, dais, stand, grandstand, staging, apron, rostrum, podium, soapbox, stump;
pulpit, box, dock;
Indian mandapam
rare tribune
2.1 (the stage) The acting or theatrical profession: I’ve always wanted to go on the stage...
- Threats by an absent father that he would annihilate his wife if she put their daughter on the stage proved no deterrent.
- Kathleen is still actively involved in the group but does not go on the stage.
- Strange, then, that he should all but abandon poetry in his twenties, and concentrate his efforts on writing for the stage.
Synonyms
(the) theatre, drama, dramatics, dramatic art, show business, the play, the footlights
informal the boards, rep
rare thespianism
2.2 [in singular] A scene of action or forum of debate, especially in a particular political context: Britain is playing a leading role on the international stage...
- On the political and international stage, events were moving apace on Wednesday.
- The reform of civil service pensions put civil servants at the centre of the political stage recently.
- The potential of using this psychological ground as part of a stage for political action has been known for some time.
Synonyms
scene, setting;
context, frame, sphere, field, realm, forum, site, arena, background, backdrop;
affairs
3A floor or level of a building or structure: the upper stage was added in the 17th century...
- The grandiosity of its concept encouraged several rulers to continue adding to the structure and adding further stages.
- The proposed stages to the management structure of the estate will be considered at a meeting of the council's cabinet on Wednesday.
- Each stage or level contains three modes, which add a little more replay value to the game but not much.
3.1(On a microscope) a raised and usually movable plate on which a slide or object is placed for examination.The specimen was placed on the stage of a light microscope with the magnification set to x100....
- When placed on the microscope stage, the bottom of the Petri dish was superimposed on this circle.
4 Geology (In chronostratigraphy) a range of strata corresponding to an age in time, forming a subdivision of a series: the Oxfordian stage...
- In the Canaries, the lavas are much more compositionally varied in each of these stages, ranging from tholeiitic basalts to phonolites and trachytes.
- The base of the system and the subdivision into six stages was originally recognized in the marine facies of the Southern Alps.
- Ross et al. subdivided the overlying Ordovician Ibexian Series into four stages, the lowest of which is the Skullrockian Stage.
4.1(In palaeoclimatology) a period of time marked by a characteristic climate: the Boreal stage...
- Silt and varved clay, probably deposited during the last stages of Pleistocene glaciation, cover the entire floor.
- Stage 2 includes deposition of the latest Neoproterozoic Lake Maurice and Ungoolya Groups, which predate and span the initial stages of the Petermann Orogeny.
- It is also evident that mudstone drapes formed during slack water stages at specific periods, whereas fine-sandstone drapes were formed in other periods.
5 historical A stagecoach.Besides this there were passengers coming in on the stage and mail from Silver Reef and Pioche....
- A four horse teem mail stage operated over this route daily, except Sunday, going west one day and returning eastward the following day.
verb [with object]
1Present a performance of (a play or other show): the show is being staged at the Grand Opera House in Belfast...
- Adult performers will be staging a one-act play as part of the drama night in December.
- Although they stage the same play, the performance is different each night.
- For Joan D' Mello, Assistant Director of Aliyavar, staging the play was a dream come true.
Synonyms
put on, put before the public, present, produce, mount, direct;
perform, act, render, give
1.1Organize and participate in (a public event): UDF supporters staged a demonstration in Sofia...
- The event was staged by concert organisers, Young Voices.
- The new service is already in talks with several high profile public sector organisations about staging large-scale forums.
- He also thanked the venues for hosting the events and the rest of the committee members for their work in organising and staging the event.
Synonyms
organize, arrange, make arrangements for, coordinate, lay on, put together, fix up, get together;
orchestrate, choreograph, be responsible for, be in charge of, direct, run, manage, stage-manage, conduct, administrate, administer, set up, mastermind, engineer
rare concert
1.2Cause (something dramatic or unexpected) to happen: the President’s attempt to stage a comeback the dollar staged a partial recovery...
- Whenever I watch England when they're in a leading position, the possibility of their opponents staging an unexpected comeback is always at the back of my mind.
- Trailing by ten points with less than ten minutes left, Malton staged a dramatic comeback to snatch the win.
- They're listening intently or with anger to a master of sound bytes who staged a dramatic comeback.
2 Medicine Diagnose or classify (a disease or patient) as having reached a particular stage in the expected progression of the disease: cancer of the prostate is staged by the way it feels on rectal exam...
- It is used in the initial diagnosis, in staging the patient, and in some therapies.
- Thomas and Patocskai may see no advantage in staging disease in patients with melanoma, but theirs is a minority view worldwide.
- Computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging are undertaken to stage the disease accurately.
Phrases
hold the stage
set the stage for
stage left (or right)
Derivatives
stageability
- My areas of expertise are in character development, relationships, plot structure and stageability.
- For all proposed concepts, stageability, beam stability, manufacturability, and high wall plug-to-beam power efficiency must be addressed in detail.
- The proper "performance" question of Senecas tragedies is not the stageability of the plays, but which stagings would yield the most meaning or the most effect.
stageable
- This is an eminently stageable and listenable piece.
- ‘Musically it's uneven, but it's certainly got some gorgeous moments (like Magda's famous early aria ‘Chi il bel sogno di Doretta… ‘), and even Puccini's weaker passages are eminently stageable.’
- O'Hara's Noh plays are among his most stageable dramas.
Origin
Middle English (denoting a floor of a building, platform, or stopping place): shortening of Old French estage 'dwelling', based on Latin stare 'to stand'. Current senses of the verb date from the early 17th century.