Pāir1, n.
(4), n. [Fr. paire, Sp. par, pareja, It. paro, pajo, Lat. par, from par, a., equal, Ger. & D. paar.]
- Two things of a kind, which are also similar in form, applied to the same purpose, and suited to each other or used together; a couple; a brace; as, a pair of gloves or stockings; a pair of shoes; a pair of oxen or horses.
- A number of things resembling one another, or belonging together; a set; a pack. [Obs. or rare.] “Two crowns in my pocket, two pair of cards.” Beau. & Fl.
Go get a pair of beads, and learn to pray, sir. Beau. & Fl. Syn. — PAIR, FLIGHT, SET. Originally, pair was not confined to two things, but was applied to any number of pares, or equal things, that go together. Ben Jonson speaks of a pair (set) of chess-men; also, he and Lord Bacon speak of a pair (pack) of cards. A “pair of stairs” was, in like manner, the original expression, as given by the earlier lexicographers, by Howell, &c., and is still in popular use, though flight was also introduced at a later period.