A 45 RPM vinyl record with one song on side A and one on side B.
"He dug out his favorite single from the crate to play that classic track at full volume."
In plain English: A single is an unmarried person who is not currently in a relationship.
"He is looking for someone to share a single room with him."
To identify or select one member of a group from the others; generally used with out, either to single out or to single (something) out.
"The detective managed to single out the suspect from the crowd by noticing his unique scar."
In plain English: To single someone out means to choose them specifically from a group.
"She decided to single out the most important comment from the list."
Usage: Use this verb primarily in negative constructions like not... out, such as "no one was singled out," rather than attempting affirmative uses that sound unnatural. It almost always requires the preposition out when functioning transitively, making it distinct from similar verbs lacking directional particles.
being or characteristic of a single thing or person
"individual drops of rain"
"please mark the individual pages"
"they went their individual ways"
used of flowers having usually only one row or whorl of petals
"single chrysanthemums resemble daisies and may have more than one row of petals"
existing alone or consisting of one entity or part or aspect or individual
"upon the hill stood a single tower"
"had but a single thought which was to escape"
"a single survivor"
"a single serving"
"a single lens"
"a single thickness"
characteristic of or meant for a single person or thing
"an individual serving"
"single occupancy"
"a single bed"
Not accompanied by anything else; one in number.
"She lives alone, but she is not single because her dog is always with her."
In plain English: Single means being alone without a partner or spouse.
"She decided to go on a single trip to visit her grandmother this summer."
The word "single" comes from the Middle English form of Old French sengle, which was borrowed from the Latin singulus meaning "one." This Latin term is a diminutive derived from an ancient root that also gave rise to words like "simple," reflecting its original sense of being one or solitary.