English Explanatory Dictionary

ground

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. The surface of the Earth, as opposed to the sky or water or underground.
  2. Terrain.
  3. Soil, earth.
  4. The bottom of a body of water.
  5. Basis, foundation, groundwork, legwork.
  6. Reason, (epistemic) justification, cause.
  7. Background, context, framework, surroundings.
  8. The area on which a battle is fought, particularly as referring to the area occupied by one side or the other. Often, according to the eventualities, "to give ground" or "to gain ground".
  9. Advantage given or gained in any contest; e.g. in football, chess, debate or academic discourse.
  10. A place suited to a specified activity.
  11. The plain surface upon which the figures of an artistic composition are set.
  12. A flat surface upon which figures are raised in relief.
verb
  1. To connect (an electrical conductor or device) to a ground.
  2. To electrocute.
  3. To punish, especially a child or teenager, by forcing them to stay at home and/or give up certain privileges.
  4. To forbid (an aircraft or pilot) to fly.
  5. To give a basic education in a particular subject; to instruct in elements or first principles.
  6. To place a bat or part of the body on the ground to avoid being run out.
  7. To hit a ground ball. Compare fly (verb (regular)) and line (verb).
  8. To place something on the ground.
  9. To run aground; to strike the bottom and remain fixed.
  10. To found; to fix or set, as on a foundation, reason, or principle; to furnish a ground for; to fix firmly.
  11. To cover with a ground, as a copper plate for etching, or as paper or other materials with a uniform tint as a preparation for ornament.
  12. To improve or focus the mental or emotional state of.
verb
  1. simple past and past participle of grind
adj
  1. Crushed, or reduced to small particles.
  2. Processed by grinding.

Pronunciation

/ɡɹaʊnd/ /ɡɹʊnd/ En-us-ground.ogg En-au-ground.ogg

Word forms

ground grounds GND grounding grounded

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gʰrem-der. Proto-Germanic *grunduz Old English grund Middle English ground English ground From Middle English ground, from Old English grund, from Proto-West Germanic *grundu, from Proto-Germanic *grunduz. Cognate with West Frisian grûn, Dutch grond and German Grund. (to punish): Compare (to bring) down to earth, to come down to earth.

Synonyms

earth munny gate milled

Related words

floor terra firma

Derived words

above ground aboveground above-ground absorbent ground aground air-to-ground archery ground background barren-ground caribou Battle Ground battleground bedground belowground best on ground bootleg ground boots on the ground bora ground break new ground Brehm's ground parrot bring to ground Brussels ground Brussels wire ground burying ground byground centerground centreground clear the ground cloud-to-ground cover ground cumberground cumber-ground cumber ground cut the ground from under someone's feet dead ground drill ground drive into the ground drive something into the ground dumping ground ear to the ground eyeground eyes on the ground facts on the ground fall on stony ground fall to the ground feet on the ground figure and ground fireground fishing ground floating ground foreground the ground up gain-ground get off the ground gill-go-by-the-ground gill-over-the-ground go to ground ground agama groundage ground and pound ground angling
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