gridiron

[ grid-ahy-ern ]

/ ˈgrɪdˌaɪ ərn /

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See synonyms for gridiron on Thesaurus.com

noun

a football field.

a utensil consisting of parallel metal bars on which to broil meat or other food.

any framework or network resembling a gridiron.

a structure above the stage of a theater, from which hung scenery and the like are manipulated.

verb (used with object)

to mark off into squares or design with a network of squares.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of gridiron

1250–1300; Middle English gridirne, gridir(e), gridere, variant of gridelgriddle; variants in -irne, -ire, etc. are associated by folk etymology with ModE variant irne, ireiron

Words nearby gridiron

gridder, griddle, griddlebread, griddlecake, gride, gridiron, gridiron pendulum, gridiron-tailed lizard, grid leak, gridlock, grid networking

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use gridiron in a sentence

Saint Lawrence, burned over an iron grill, stands with a gridiron.
Jan. 6 Has Given The Right Hundreds Of New Martyrs|Kaleigh Rogers|September 22, 2021|FiveThirtyEight
Defensive chairs have a protruding bumper specifically designed to “hook” and hold an attacker, just as you might tackle or block in conventional rugby or on a gridiron.
Para-Athletes Use Some of the Most Innovative Gear We’ve Seen|agintzler|September 10, 2021|Outside Online
Even the fact that he is taking over a downtrodden program only gives Kelley another chance to upend traditional notions of how things normally proceed on the gridiron.
A high school coach who never punts and loves onside kicks grabs reins of FCS program|Des Bieler|May 7, 2021|Washington Post
Shortly after capping its best season in program history on the gridiron, Alabama is in the midst of its best season in program history on the hardwood.
Alabama Is Looking Like An SEC Powerhouse … In Basketball|Josh Planos|February 22, 2021|FiveThirtyEight

That may be how the Tide’s season ends, but for now, Oats and his players have dreams of a national championship, just like their gridiron brethren.
Alabama Is Looking Like An SEC Powerhouse … In Basketball|Josh Planos|February 22, 2021|FiveThirtyEight
This opponent is like no other Rodgers has to face on the gridiron.
Aaron Rodgers Takes Aim at Congo’s ‘Blood Minerals’ War|John Prendergast|December 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Back then, every single newspaper, website, and news show (even the fake news shows) was awash in gridiron scandal.
How the Media Failed to Nail the NFL|Steve Almond|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The senator, a college gridiron star, has a coldly Machiavellian widow.
Better Than Fiction: The Rise, Fall, And Return of Webb Hubbell|Lloyd Grove|May 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Doing well at the Gridiron is a rite of passage that not everybody survives.
The GOP’s Comedy Gap|Eleanor Clift|March 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
How an economist views the game and the evidence from XLVII years on the gridiron.
Want a Super Bowl Boost for the Economy? Root for Seattle.|Mark Lieberman|February 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
So saying he proceeded to place the red herrings on a gridiron, as if he were the recognised cook of the establishment.
Hunted and Harried|R.M. Ballantyne
The bourgeois of Nantes turned around sharply and saw the heaped-up combustibles under the gridiron beginning to take fire.
The Pilgrim's Shell or Fergan the Quarryman|Eugne Sue
The corpse of Bezenecq the Rich was chained to the gridiron above the dying embers of the coal fire.
The Pilgrim's Shell or Fergan the Quarryman|Eugne Sue
Approaching Isoline, he struck against the gridiron, where lay the corpse of the bourgeois of Nantes.
The Pilgrim's Shell or Fergan the Quarryman|Eugne Sue
The unhappy Coquerico stripped of all his feathers, the soldier took him and laid him on the gridiron.
Laboulaye's Fairy Book|Various

British Dictionary definitions for gridiron

gridiron

/ (ˈɡrɪdˌaɪən) /

noun

a utensil of parallel metal bars, used to grill meat, fish, etc

any framework resembling this utensil

a framework above the stage in a theatre from which suspended scenery, lights, etc, are manipulated

the field of play in American football
an informal name for American football
(as modifier)a gridiron hero

Often shortened to: grid

Word Origin for gridiron

C13 gredire, perhaps variant (through influence of ire iron) of gredile griddle

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

gridiron

Origin of gridiron

Words nearby gridiron

Words related to gridiron

How to use gridiron in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for gridiron

Word Origin for gridiron