network

American  

[net-wurk] / ˈnɛtˌwɜrk /

noun

networks plural

1. any netlike combination of filaments, lines, veins, passages, or the like.

   a network of arteries; a network of sewers under the city.

2. Radio and Television.

   1. a group of transmitting stations linked by wire or microwave relay so that the same program can be broadcast or telecast by all.

   2. a company or organization that provides programs to be broadcast over these stations.

      She was hired by the network as program coordinator.

3. Telecommunications, Computers. a system containing any combination of computers, computer terminals, printers, audio or visual display devices, or telephones interconnected by telecommunication equipment or cables: used to transmit or receive information.

4. an association of individuals having a common interest, formed to provide mutual assistance, helpful information, or the like.

   a network of recent college graduates.

5. a system of interrelated buildings, offices, stations, etc., especially over a large area or throughout a country, territory, region, etc..

   a network of supply depots.

6. Electricity. an arrangement of conducting elements, as resistors, capacitors, or inductors, connected by conducting wire.

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verb (used without object)

1. to cultivate people who can be helpful to one professionally, especially in finding employment or moving to a higher position.

   His business lunches were taken up with networking.

verb (used with object)

1. to place (as a program from a local radio or television station) in or on a network.

   The station will try to network the local cooking show.

2. to connect to a network.

   Our freelancers are networked to the same system as our regular employees.

3. to distribute widely.

   We charge a small fee for networking your résumé.

4. to cover with or as if with a network.

   to network a bay with buoys.

5. to organize into a network.

   to network the state's independent stations.

6. to broadcast (a program) over a radio or television network.

network British  

/ ˈnɛtˌwɜːk /

noun

1. an interconnected group or system

   a network of shops

2. Also: net.  a system of intersecting lines, roads, veins, etc

3. another name for net 1 netting

4. radio television a group of broadcasting stations that all transmit the same programme simultaneously

5. electronics a system of interconnected components or circuits

6. computing a system of interconnected computer systems, terminals, and other equipment allowing information to be exchanged

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verb

1. (tr) radio television to broadcast on stations throughout the country

   the Scotland–England match was networked

2. computing (of computers, terminals, etc) to connect or be connected

3. (intr) to form business contacts through informal social meetings

network Scientific  

/ nĕt′wûrk′ /

1. A system of computers and peripherals, such as printers, that are linked together. A network can consist of as few as two computers connected with cables or millions of computers that are spread over a large geographical area and are connected by telephone lines, fiberoptic cables, or radio waves. The Internet is an example of very large network.

2. See more at LAN WAN

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network Cultural  

1. A system of computers that are joined together so that they can communicate by exchanging information and sharing resources. (See Internet and lan.)

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• networker
  noun
• subnetwork
  noun
• supernetwork
  noun
• nonnetwork
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• networks
  plural

Etymology

Origin of network

First recorded in 1550–60, and in 1910–15 network for def. 2; net ¹ + work

Explanation

A network is any interconnected system. The Internet is a network of computers all talking to one another. A subway is a network of interconnected train lines running underneath the city. A wise man once said that if the atom was the symbol of the 20th century, the network should be the symbol of the 21st. Increasingly our world relies on networks, the vast interconnected systems of people, electronics, ideas and even resources. To put pressure on any one part of a network is to put pressure on all parts, because, by definition, a network is interconnected. Whether the network is a television network, a cellular network, or a social network — each is a vast system of interconnected parts.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

network networks

Qualifying catches are also sent to the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, an international network which provides open access to data about all types of life.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

To market their goods, they turned to an informal network of African American artists, staging pop-up exhibitions in people’s homes and in other impromptu locations.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026

They popped up a swarm of short-lift attackers to map out Hugging Face’s network and took an astounding 17,000 actions during the hack, far more than a human would.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026

The Backrooms are an internet-created fictional setting imagined as an infinite network of empty, fluorescent-lit rooms.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 26, 2026

They didn’t have to rely on the main roads, either; their loggers knew the network of private roads they’d built through the trees.

From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone

Assets and relationships cultivated over decades have been torched, and the longer the conflict lasts, the weaker Iran’s regional networks are likely to become.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026

A license plate circulated on chat networks, and agents later swapped it out.

From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026

"That creates significant inequalities, because young people without family or professional networks are far more likely either to miss out altogether, or to end up in placements that aren't relevant to their ambitions."

From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026

The broadband market has gotten more crowded and more competitive, with the major wireless companies stepping up their investments in home-internet plans through both fiber offerings and fixed-wireless-access offerings that leverage their existing cellular networks.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026

Poetry and drama were deeply involved in networks of patronage: praise-poems, sucky-up dedications, scurrilous broadsides, and vicious “flytings” of one’s rivals.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

Related Words

• chain
• grid
• net
• organization
• structure
• system
• web