net
1a bag or other contrivance of strong thread or cord worked into an open, meshed fabric, for catching fish, birds, or other animals: a butterfly net.
a piece of meshed fabric designed to serve a specific purpose, as to divide a court in racket games or protect against insects: a tennis net; a mosquito net.
anything serving to catch or ensnare: a police net to trap the bank robber.
a lacelike fabric with a uniform mesh of cotton, silk, rayon, nylon, etc., often forming the foundation of any of various laces.
(in tennis, badminton, etc.) a ball that hits the net.
Often nets. the goal in hockey or lacrosse.
any network or reticulated system of filaments, lines, veins, or the like.
Telecommunications. any network containing computers and telecommunications equipment.
Sometimes Net .Digital Technology. internet (preceded by the, except when used before a noun): An overwhelming majority of Americans now have access to the net at home or at work.
Mathematics. the abstraction, in topology, of a sequence; a map from a directed set to a given space.
Net, Astronomy. the constellation Reticulum.
Informal. a radio or television network.
to cover, screen, or enclose with a net or netting: netting the bed to keep out mosquitoes.
to take with a net: to net fish.
to set or use nets in (a river, stream, etc.), as for catching fish.
to catch or ensnare: to net a dangerous criminal.
(in tennis, badminton, etc.) to hit (the ball) into the net.
Origin of net
1Other words for net
Other words from net
- net·ta·ble, adjective
- netlike, adjective
Words Nearby net
Other definitions for net (2 of 3)
remaining after deductions, as for charges or expenses (opposed to gross): net earnings.
sold at a stated price with all parts and charges included and with all deductions having been made.
final; totally conclusive: After all that work, what was the net result?
(of weight) after deduction of tare, tret, or both.
net income, profit, or the like.
to gain or produce as clear profit.
Origin of net
2Other words from net
- net·ta·ble, adjective
Other definitions for NET (3 of 3)
National Educational Television.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use net in a sentence
With the IPO, Slootman, who joined in April, 2019, saw his net worth grow by several billion dollars on paper.
Snowflake CEO: Doubling of stock price after IPO reflects ‘frothy’ market | Aaron Pressman | September 16, 2020 | FortuneRoughly half the reductions required to swiftly reach global net-zero emissions must come from technologies that aren’t yet commercially available.
To confront the climate crisis, the US should launch a National Energy Innovation Mission | Amy Nordrum | September 15, 2020 | MIT Technology ReviewIn 2016, Facebook’s zero-rated “Free Basics” service was shuttered by India’s telecoms regulator, for breaking net neutrality.
The EU’s top court just closed a major loophole in Europe’s net-neutrality rules | David Meyer | September 15, 2020 | FortuneThe search will cast a wide net and winnow the applicants down in a one-day, virtual pitch challenge hosted by John.
Lowe’s teams up with Daymond John to diversify its suppliers with a virtual pitch competition | McKenna Moore | September 15, 2020 | FortuneAfter the DNC started, but before the RNC, his net favorability rating ticked down to -15 points.
Trump And Biden Both Got Small Convention Bounces. But Only Biden Got More Popular. | Nathaniel Rakich (nathaniel.rakich@fivethirtyeight.com) | September 11, 2020 | FiveThirtyEight
“Hence, there might be a net benefit, at least to some females, of breeding within the natal group,” the researchers speculate.
Mongooses, Meerkats, and Ants, Oh My! Why Some Animals Keep Mating All in the Family | Helen Thompson | December 29, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe outcome of the rum feud is critical for both Bacardi and Pernod Ricard, because the winner could net billions in future sales.
Initially these were individuals “from higher net worth circles,” he says, especially as the site launched with benefit auctions.
William, Kate, and Jay Z’s Favorite Art Star: Alexander Gilkes' World of Rock Stars and Royalty | Tim Teeman | December 10, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTDuring the recession net immigration to the U.S. from Mexico fell to zero or less.
In contrast, areas 10 to 20 miles away from city hall gained roughly 15 million net residents.
Specimens were easily collected in a mist net placed across the opening.
Summer Birds From the Yucatan Peninsula | Erwin E. KlaasBut what if I catch the fish by using a hired boat and a hired net, or by buying worms as bait from some one who has dug them?
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice | Stephen LeacockWhen it was all over Alila was not too tired to play for awhile with a few locusts he had caught in a net.
Alila, Our Little Philippine Cousin | Mary Hazelton WadeOn the way we were greatly excited to see the bladder of an indicator net smoking.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I | Ian HamiltonAs a net is full of birds, so their houses are full of deceit: therefore are they become great and enriched.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version | Various
British Dictionary definitions for net (1 of 3)
/ (nɛt) /
an openwork fabric of string, rope, wire, etc; mesh: Related adjective: retiary
a device made of net, used to protect or enclose things or to trap animals
a thin light mesh fabric of cotton, nylon, or other fibre, used for curtains, dresses, etc
(as modifier): net curtains
a plan, strategy, etc, intended to trap or ensnare: the murderer slipped through the police net
sport
a strip of net that divides the playing area into two equal parts
a shot that hits the net, whether or not it goes over
the goal in soccer, hockey, etc
(often plural) cricket
a pitch surrounded by netting, used for practice
a practice session in a net
informal short for internet
another word for network (def. 2)
(tr) to catch with or as if with a net; ensnare
(tr) to shelter or surround with a net
(intr) sport to score a goal: Rangers netted three times in seven minutes
to make a net out of (rope, string, etc)
(intr) to hit a shot into the net
Origin of net
1British Dictionary definitions for net (2 of 3)
nett
/ (nɛt) /
remaining after all deductions, as for taxes, expenses, losses, etc: net profit Compare gross (def. 2)
(of weight) after deducting tare
ultimate; final; conclusive (esp in the phrase net result)
net income, profits, weight, etc
(tr) to yield or earn as clear profit
Origin of net
2British Dictionary definitions for net (3 of 3)
a company or organization
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
Cultural definitions for net
What remains after all deductions have been made. (Compare gross.)
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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