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grid (grĭd)
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n.
1.
a. A framework of crisscrossed or parallel bars; a grating or mesh.
b. A cooking surface of parallel metal bars; a gridiron.
2. Something resembling a framework of crisscrossed parallel bars, as in rigidity or organization: The city's streets form a grid.
3. A pattern of regularly spaced horizontal and vertical lines forming squares on a map, a chart, an aerial photograph, or an optical device, used as a reference for locating points.
4. Electricity
a. An interconnected system for the distribution of electricity or electromagnetic signals over a wide area, especially a network of high-tension cables and power stations.
b. A corrugated or perforated conducting plate in a storage battery.
5. Football The gridiron.
6. Sports The starting positions of cars on a racecourse.
[Short for GRIDIRON.]
gridded adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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