ground
1 Americannoun
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grounds
plural
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the solid surface of the earth; firm or dry land.
He fell to the ground with a loud thud.
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earth or soil.
The stony ground is bad for growing wheat.
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land having an indicated character.
The church stands on rising ground overlooking the town.
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Often grounds a tract of land appropriated to a special use (often used in combination).
Please keep the picnic grounds clean using the trash cans provided.
The park was originally a hunting ground for the royal family.
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Often grounds the foundation or basis on which a belief or action rests; reason or cause.
Harassment is grounds for dismissal.
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subject for discussion; topic.
Sex education is forbidden ground in some school curricula.
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rational or factual support for one's position or attitude, as in a debate or argument.
The study's theoretical underpinnings are on firm ground.
I had little medical knowledge of my own, so I was on shaky ground trying to figure out the problem.
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the main surface or background in painting, decorative work, lace, etc.
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Fine Arts.
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a coating of some substance serving as a surface for paint, ink, or other media in art.
Lead white is a traditional ground for oil paintings.
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the perceived background in a visual field, contrasted with the figure.
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grounds,
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coffee beans or the like that have been ground and used for brewing.
He cleared the coffee grounds out of the bottom of the pot and started a new batch brewing.
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dregs or sediment.
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grounds, the gardens, lawn, etc., surrounding and belonging to a building.
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Electricity. a conducting connection between an electric circuit or equipment and the earth or some other conducting body.
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Music. ground bass.
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Nautical. the bottom of a body of water.
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the earth's solid or liquid surface; land or water.
Our website can only compute the cost of shipping by ground, not by air.
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Also called etching ground. an acid-resistant substance, composed of wax, gum, and resin in varying proportions, applied to the entire surface of an etching plate and through which the design is drawn with an etching needle.
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Carpentry.
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a strip of wood to which woodwork can be attached, set flush with the plaster finish of a room.
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a strip of wood or length of corner bead used at an opening as a stop for plasterwork.
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adjective
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situated on, at, or adjacent to the surface of the earth.
a ground attack.
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relating to the ground.
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Military. operating on land.
ground forces.
verb (used with object)
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to lay or set on the ground.
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to place on a foundation; fix firmly; settle or establish; found.
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to instruct in the basics or first principles.
Before training them for medicine, you have to ground students in science.
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Electricity. to establish a ground for (a circuit, device, etc.).
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Nautical. to cause (a vessel) to run aground.
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Aeronautics. to restrict (an aircraft or the like) to the ground because of bad weather, the unsatisfactory condition of the aircraft, etc.
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to forbid (a pilot) to fly because of bad health, failure to comply with safety regulations, or the like.
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Informal. to put out of action or make unable to participate.
The quarterback was grounded by a knee injury.
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to restrict the activities, especially the social activities, of.
I can't go to the party—my parents have grounded me until my grades improve.
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to cause (someone) to become calmer or more peaceful, especially during moments of stress or strong emotion.
When I'm having an anxiety attack, going for a run really grounds me.
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to furnish with a ground or background, as on decorative work.
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to cover (wallpaper) with colors or other materials before printing.
verb (used without object)
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to come to or strike the ground.
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Baseball.
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to hit a ground ball.
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to ground out.
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verb phrase
idioms
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into the ground, beyond a reasonable or necessary point.
You've stated your case, and you needn't run it into the ground.
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give ground, to yield to force or forceful argument; retreat.
The disarmament talks reached an impasse when neither side would give ground on inspection proposals.
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suit down to the ground, to be perfectly satisfactory; please greatly.
This climate suits me down to the ground.
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to ground,
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into a den, burrow, shelter, or the like.
a fox gone to ground.
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into concealment or hiding.
Rather than take the witness stand, she went to ground in another country.
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lose ground,
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to retreat or be forced back.
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to lose one's advantage; suffer a reverse.
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to wane in popularity or acceptance; begin to fail.
Our candidate is losing ground in industrial areas.
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boots on the ground,
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troops or forces who are physically present in a military campaign, law enforcement operation, or the like.
Will NATO put boots on the ground to enforce the agreement?
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people who are physically present to carry out work.
Some of our volunteers work online, and others work as boots on the ground in several locations.
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break ground,
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to plow.
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to begin excavation for a construction project.
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to begin or take preparatory measures for any undertaking.
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on the ground,
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at the place of action, interest, or importance.
Minutes after the bank robbery, reporters were on the ground to get the story.
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in reality; in real life: .
The facts on the ground are different from the rosy picture in official narratives
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cover ground,
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to pass or travel over a certain area.
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to make a certain amount of progress in dealing with a piece of work, subject, treatise, or the like.
He talked for two hours without covering much ground.
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take the ground, to become grounded at low water.
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shift ground, to change position in an argument or situation.
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from the ground up,
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gradually from the most elementary level to the highest level.
She learned the business from the ground up.
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extensively; thoroughly.
The professor knew his subject from the ground up.
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gain ground,
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to make progress; advance.
As consumer demand for SUVs gained ground, so did the company's popularity.
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to gain approval or acceptance.
The case for renewable energy is gaining ground throughout the country.
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off the ground, into action or well under way.
The play never got off the ground.
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on one's own ground, in an area or situation that one knows well.
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hold / stand one's ground, to maintain one's position; be steadfast.
The referee stood his ground, though his decision was hotly contested by the crowd.
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cut the ground from under, to render (an argument, position, person, etc.) ineffective or invalid; refute.
It didn't require much effort to cut the ground from under that case.
verb
adjective
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reduced to fine particles or dust by grinding.
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(of meat, vegetables, etc.) reduced to very small pieces by putting through a food processor or grinder.
ground beef.
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having the surface abraded or roughened by or as if by grinding, as in order to reduce its transparency.
ground glass.
verb
adjective
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having the surface finished, thickness reduced, or an edge sharpened by grinding
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reduced to fine particles by grinding
noun
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the land surface
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earth or soil
he dug into the ground outside his house
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(plural) the land around a dwelling house or other building
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(sometimes plural) an area of land given over to a purpose
football ground
burial grounds
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land having a particular characteristic
level ground
high ground
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matter for consideration or debate; field of research or inquiry
the lecture was familiar ground to him
the report covered a lot of ground
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a position or viewpoint, as in an argument or controversy (esp in the phrases give ground, hold, stand, or shift one's ground )
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position or advantage, as in a subject or competition (esp in the phrases gain ground, lose ground, etc)
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(often plural) reason; justification
grounds for complaint
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arts
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the prepared surface applied to the support of a painting, such as a wall, canvas, etc, to prevent it reacting with or absorbing the paint
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the support of a painting
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the background of a painting or main surface against which the other parts of a work of art appear superimposed
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the first coat of paint applied to a surface
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( as modifier )
ground colour
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the bottom of a river or the sea
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(plural) sediment or dregs, esp from coffee
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the floor of a room
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cricket
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the area from the popping crease back past the stumps, in which a batsman may legally stand
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ground staff
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See ground bass
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a mesh or network supporting the main pattern of a piece of lace
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electrical
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a connection between an electrical circuit or device and the earth, which is at zero potential
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Also called: earth. a terminal to which this connection is made
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alive
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dead and buried
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to do something that has not been done before
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to anticipate someone's action or argument and thus make it irrelevant or meaningless
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informal completely; absolutely
it suited him down to the ground
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informal to make a beginning, esp one that is successful
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to go into hiding
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beyond what is requisite or can be endured; to exhaustion
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to meet someone according to terms he has laid down himself
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a position of moral or ethical superiority in a dispute
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(of a ship) to strike the sea bed
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to arrive at something solid or stable after discussing or dealing with topics that are abstract or inconclusive
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(modifier) situated on, living on, or used on the ground
ground frost
ground forces
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(modifier) concerned with or operating on the ground, esp as distinct from in the air
ground crew
ground hostess
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(modifier) (used in names of plants) low-growing and often trailing or spreading
verb
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(tr) to put or place on the ground
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(tr) to instruct in fundamentals
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(tr) to provide a basis or foundation for; establish
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(tr) to confine (an aircraft, pilot, etc) to the ground
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informal (tr) to confine (a child) to the house as a punishment
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the usual US word for earth
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(tr) nautical to run (a vessel) aground
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(tr) to cover (a surface) with a preparatory coat of paint
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(intr) to hit or reach the ground
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A connection between an electrical conductor and the Earth. Grounds are used to establish a common zero-voltage reference for electric devices in order to prevent potentially dangerous voltages from arising between them and other objects.
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Also called earth
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The set of shared points in an electrical circuit at which the measured voltage is taken to be zero. The ground is usually connected directly to the power supply and acts as a common “sink” for current flowing through the components in the circuit.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of ground1
First recorded before 900; (for the noun) Middle English ground, grund, grond “bottom, base, foot (of a ladder),” Old English grund “bottom, deep place, abyss”; cognate with Dutch grond, German Grund; verb derivative of the noun
Origin of ground2
First recorded in 1755–65 ground 2 for def. 2; ground 1
Explanation
Ground is the surface of the earth under your feet. Whether you're walking on the beach or climbing a hill, you're standing on the ground. When a plane lands, it touches down on the ground, and when you get off a scary carnival ride, you're usually very happy to have your feet on solid ground. The noun shows up in phrases like "break new ground," which means to do something completely new, and "stand your ground," or refuse to give up your advantage during an argument or competition. The Old English root is grund, "bottom, foundation, or surface of the earth."
Vocabulary lists containing ground
Art History
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"The Tragedy of Hamlet," Vocabulary from Act 5
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"We managed to rescue five of them, but one person lost his life," he said, describing how some workers reached higher ground or construction areas out of reach of the torrent.
From Barron's ● Aug. 30, 2026
He also worries about feeling useless on the ground and even making the rescue effort "more problematic".
From Barron's ● Aug. 29, 2026
The decision was greeted with booing by some of the sparse crowd that remained inside the ground.
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026
In just two days on the road, I tried to cover as much ground as possible.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 29, 2026
The ground beneath me is beginning to sway, and the phone in my hand feels like it weighs a ton.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
A further application on the grounds of his connection to his son, Carl Mason, who has Swedish residency, was also rejected.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
If you are not daunted by the amount of work needed to maintain grounds of this size, it is a mini slice of paradise on a sunny day.
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026
In 2021, Tennessee lawmakers proposed erecting a statue of Parton on the grounds of the state Capitol.
From Salon ● Aug. 29, 2026
They went on a five-mile walk together, in and around Leon’s vast grounds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 29, 2026
The flat stoicism of her earlier utterances disappears and Mrs. Dannenberg grounds her forehead into the palm of her hand.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
