grid

noun

ˈgrid 

1

: grating

2

a(1)

: a perforated or ridged metal plate used as a conductor in a storage battery

(2)

: an electrode consisting of a mesh or a spiral of fine wire in an electron tube

(3)

: a network of conductors for distribution of electric power

also : a network of radio or television stations

b

: a network of uniformly spaced horizontal and perpendicular lines (as for locating points on a map)

also : something resembling such a network

a road grid

c

: gridiron sense 3

broadly : football

3

: the starting positions of cars on a racecourse

4

: a device in a photocomposer on which are located the characters to be exposed as the text is composed

Examples of grid in a Sentence

The students plotted points on a grid.

The city streets form a grid.

Recent Examples on the Web

No team dreams of occupying the final row of the grid, yet for Alpine, this unwelcome reality was laid bare under the glaring lights of Bahrain. —Kanzah Maktoum, Forbes, 6 Dec. 2024

With less than 300 total staff spread across England, Italy and the US, Haas are the smallest team on the grid, according to Hanley, who begins drawing up schematics for the garage six weeks before each race. —Jack Bantock, CNN, 6 Dec. 2024

This past January, the Texas power grid used a record-breaking 78,349 megawatts. —Marley Malenfant, Austin American-Statesman, 5 Dec. 2024

Private equity firms are playing a key role in financing the build-out of clean energy and grid infrastructure. —Katie Fehrenbacher, Axios, 5 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from gridiron

First Known Use

1839, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing grid

• cattle grid
• micro-grid
• off-grid
• off-the-grid

Kids Definition

grid

noun

ˈgrid 

1

: grating sense 1

2

: a metal plate used as a conductor in a storage battery

3

: an element of an electron tube consisting of a network of fine wire

4

: a network of horizontal and perpendicular lines (as for locating points on a map using coordinates or for counting a sample of particles or organisms on a microscope slide)

5

: a network of conductors for distribution of electrical power

also : a network of radio or television stations