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• net
  net

  noun

  a bag or other contrivance of strong thread or cord worked into an open, meshed fabric, for catching fish, birds, or other animals.
• NET
  NET

  National Educational Television.

net

¹ American  

[net] / nɛt /

noun

1. a 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.

2. 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.

3. anything serving to catch or ensnare.

   a police net to trap the bank robber.

4. a lacelike fabric with a uniform mesh of cotton, silk, rayon, nylon, etc., often forming the foundation of any of various laces.

5. (in tennis, badminton, etc.) a ball that hits the net.

6. Often nets. the goal in hockey or lacrosse.

7. any network or reticulated system of filaments, lines, veins, or the like.

8. Telecommunications. any network containing computers and telecommunications equipment.

9. Digital Technology. Sometimes Net 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.

10. Mathematics. the abstraction, in topology, of a sequence; a map from a directed set to a given space.

11. Astronomy. Net, the constellation Reticulum.

12. Informal. a radio or television network.

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verb (used with object)

netted, netting

1. to cover, screen, or enclose with a net or netting.

   netting the bed to keep out mosquitoes.

2. to take with a net.

   to net fish.

3. to set or use nets in (a river, stream, etc.), as for catching fish.

   Synonyms:

   trap, capture, seize

4. to catch or ensnare.

   to net a dangerous criminal.

5. (in tennis, badminton, etc.) to hit (the ball) into the net.

net ² American  

[net] / nɛt /

adjective

1. remaining after deductions, as for charges or expenses (opposed to gross).

   net earnings.

2. sold at a stated price with all parts and charges included and with all deductions having been made.

3. final; totally conclusive.

   After all that work, what was the net result?

4. (of weight) after deduction of tare, tret, or both.

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noun

1. net income, profit, or the like.

verb (used with object)

netted, netting

1. to gain or produce as clear profit.

NET ³ American  

1. National Educational Television.

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net ¹ British  

/ nɛt /

adjective

1. remaining after all deductions, as for taxes, expenses, losses, etc Compare gross

   net profit

2. (of weight) after deducting tare

3. ultimate; final; conclusive (esp in the phrase net result )

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noun

1. net income, profits, weight, etc

verb

1. (tr) to yield or earn as clear profit

net ² British  

/ nɛt /

noun

1. an openwork fabric of string, rope, wire, etc; mesh

2. a device made of net, used to protect or enclose things or to trap animals

3. 1. a thin light mesh fabric of cotton, nylon, or other fibre, used for curtains, dresses, etc

   2. ( as modifier )

      net curtains

4. a plan, strategy, etc, intended to trap or ensnare

   the murderer slipped through the police net

5. sport

   1. a strip of net that divides the playing area into two equal parts

   2. a shot that hits the net, whether or not it goes over

6. the goal in soccer, hockey, etc

7. (often plural) cricket

   1. a pitch surrounded by netting, used for practice

   2. a practice session in a net

8. informal short for internet

9. another word for network

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verb

1. (tr) to catch with or as if with a net; ensnare

2. (tr) to shelter or surround with a net

3. (intr) sport to score a goal

   Rangers netted three times in seven minutes

4. to make a net out of (rope, string, etc)

5. (intr) to hit a shot into the net

net ³ British  

abbreviation

1. a company or organization

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net Cultural  

1. What remains after all deductions have been made. (Compare gross.)

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Usage

What’s the difference between net and gross? In the context of finance and accounting, net refers to the final amount that remains after deductions have been made, while gross refers to the total amount before any deductions. Of course, net and gross are common words with many other meanings, but these senses of net and gross are used in the context of measuring something (especially money) that has been accumulated—profit, income, earnings, gains, etc. The amount described or referred to as gross is everything that has been taken in, not accounting for things like debts, deductions, and expenses. The amount described or referred to as net is how much you have left after you’ve subtracted anything that doesn’t count toward profit, like debts and expenses. In other words, net is basically gross minus whatever you owe or have spent. For this reason, net is always lower than gross. For example, let’s say you decide to sell cupcakes at a bake sale. You spend $15 on ingredients, and you have to rent a table for $5, which equals $20 in expenses. Good news, you make $50 in cupcake sales. Your gross is $50. Minus the $20 in expenses, your net is $30. You could say you grossed $50 and netted $30. To remember the difference, remember that a net sifts whatever goes into it so that only some remains. Here’s an example of net and gross used correctly in the same sentence. Example: For this quarter, gross income was $2 million, but $1. 25 million in expenses and outstanding debts resulted in a net of only $750,000. Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between net and gross.

Other Word Forms

• netlike
  adjective
• nettable
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of net¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English,  Old English noun net(t); cognate with Dutch, Old Norse net, Gothic nati, German Netz; akin to Latin nōdus “knot”; verb derivative of the noun

Origin of net²

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English net, nette “worthy, good, after deductions”; see origin at neat ¹

Explanation

A net is a device, made of fabric or rope stitched together, used to catch things such as fish or butterflies. Net can also refer to profits. There are many nets, but two kinds have to do with catching things and making profit. The first net is like a fisherman's net: it's a type of meshing (meaning it has holes) made from rope or wire. This net is used to catch fish, and the holes allow the water to pour out. Also, someone's net worth is how much money they have. A net profit is a company’s earnings. A larger net means more money.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

net NET netted netting

Unlike the rallies of 2024 and 2025, where surveys by the American Association of Individual Investors showed respondents turning net bullish, investors have remained staunchly bearish in 2026, he notes.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026

Zverev won 13 of 15 points behind his first serve and all nine points at the net in the first set as he broke Khachanov to go 5-3 up before serving out the opener.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

Sesko had clarity of thought, swiftly moving the ball past goalkeeper Stas Pokatilov before steering the ball into an empty net.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

At 30 years old, McNicholas had a negative net worth.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

Taking the net from me, Papa looked at it and said, “What are these rings and strings for?”

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls

USC still sits at No. 25 in the NET rankings, thanks to its grueling nonconference schedule to start the season.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 24, 2026

Swaths of the internet were knocked offline Tuesday as a global outage for web security service Cloudflare NET -3.92%decrease; red down pointing triangle downed social-media sites, disrupted retail sales and stymied productivity and recruitment platforms.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 18, 2025

Excess NET formation has been linked to serious inflammatory and clotting conditions, including severe infections, autoimmune diseases, cancer, diabetes, and arthritis.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 13, 2025

Jo Coton, chief executive of the NET Academies Trust, which runs Katherines, said staff were "thrilled" with the "beautiful" new building.

From BBC ● Jan. 16, 2025

I’ve seen him launch it from thirty feet before, ALL NET.

From "The Crossover" by Kwame Alexander

Bubblemaps netted those two losses against the profits for its analysis.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

He netted $2.2 million when Motorola acquired the body camera firm in 2019, according to his income tax return from that year.

From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026

The FTC and states say in their lawsuit filed Monday that the alleged scheme has likely netted the company $20bn from advertising customers since 2019.

From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026

Each consisted of a conical plastic container with a netted bottom and held one queen along with 60 worker bees.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 22, 2026

The arrests netted only a few small fry, but the Nazis now knew that their codes had been broken.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

France recently sold the last of its New York gold, while upgrading it and netting a gain equivalent to $15 billion.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 6, 2026

Heisenberg: Thiago is the clear talisman for Brentford after a sensational goal-scoring season, netting 22 league goals.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

Near a petrol station draped in anti-drone netting, an employee casually smoked a cigarette, waiting for the alert to be over.

From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026

Ukraine has also built physical barriers to protect against Russian strikes, including antidrone netting and layers of concrete.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026

A light scurrying under the netting of dried grass that matted the ground.

From "Pax" by Sara Pennypacker

Related Words

• accumulate
• bring in
• earn
• reap