rank Hear it!

rank¹ Definition

rank (raŋk)

noun

  1. a row, line, or series
  2. an orderly arrangement
  3. a social division or class; stratum of society people from all ranks of life
  4. a high position in society; high degree; eminence a person of rank
  5. an official grade or position the rank of captain
  6. a relative position, usually in a scale classifying persons or things; grade; degree a poet of the first rank
  7. any of the rows of squares on a chessboard extending from side to side, perpendicular to the files
  8. Mil.
    1. a row of soldiers, vehicles, etc. placed side by side, or abreast of one another
    2. the body of soldiers of an army, as distinguished from the officers [to rise from the ranks]: often used metaphorically to refer to the ordinary members of any group, as opposed to its leaders
  9. Music stop ()

Etymology: MFr renc < OFr ranc, renc: see range

transitive verb

  1. to place in a rank or ranks
  2. to assign a certain rank, or position, to
  3. ☆ to have a higher rank than; outrank

intransitive verb

  1. to hold a certain rank, or position to rank third on a list
  2. Archaic to form a rank or move in ranks

rank¹ Idioms

pull (one's) rank on

☆

Slang to take advantage of one's military rank in enforcing commands or one's high position or seniority in making demands on (a subordinate)

rank² Definition

rank (raŋk)

adjective

  1. growing vigorously and coarsely; overly luxuriant rank grass
  2. producing or covered with a luxuriant crop; extremely fertile
  3. strong and offensive in smell or taste; rancid
  4. in bad taste; coarse
  5. complete; utter rank deceit
  6. Obsolete in sexual heat

Etymology: ME ranke < OE ranc, strong, proud, akin to MLowG rank, slender, erect, long and thin < IE base *reĝ-, put in order, stretch out > right

rank² Related Forms

rank′ly adverb rank′·ness noun

rank Synonyms

rank

modif.

  1. Having luxurious growth

    wild, dense, lush, vigorous, tall of growth, tropical, semitropical, overabundant, jungly, fertile, rich, productive, high-growing, fructiferous, coarse, overgrown, luxuriant, exuberant, profuse, prolific, lavish, excessive, rampant, extreme; see also green 2, thick 1.

    Antonyms sparse, thin*, barren. *

  2. Having a foul odor

    smelly, fetid, putrid, stinking, rancid, disagreeable, smelling, offensive, sour, foul, fusty, noisome, noxious, stale, tainted, gamy, musty, strong, putrescent, rotten, moldy, high, ill-smelling, turned, nauseating, obnoxious, disgusting, reeking, mephitic, malodorous, ordurous, nasty, feculent, strong-smelling, graveolent.

    Antonyms fragrant, sweet*, fresh. *

  3. Corrupt

    gross, coarse, indecent; see outrageous, wicked 1.

  4. Utter

    complete, outright, flagrant; see absolute 1.

rank Synonyms

rank

n.

  1. A row

    column, file, series, string; see line 1.

  2. Degree

    seniority, standing, station, authority, status, grade, class, order, level, sphere; see also degree 2.

  3. Social eminence

    station, position, status, distinction, note, nobility, class, caste, privilege, standing, reputation, quality, situation, esteem, condition, state, place, place in society, circumstance, footing, grade, blood, family, pedigree, ancestry, stock, parentage, birth.

pull rank on*

take advantage of, exploit, abuse subordinates; see abuse 1, command 1, 2.

rank Synonyms

rank

v.

  1. To arrange in a row or rows

    array, put in line, line up, place in formation; see line 4, order 3.

  2. To evaluate comparatively

    rate, grade, sort, order, arrange, dispose, place, put, regard, judge, assign, classify, give precedence to, fix, establish, settle, estimate, value, valuate, list, prioritize; see also classify.

  3. To possess relative evaluation

    be worth, stand, have a place, head, go ahead of, go before, be anterior to, come first, forerun, antecede, have supremacy over, have the advantage of, precede, outrank, take the lead, take precedence, belong, count among, be classed, stand in relationship.

rank Usage Examples

Object

passu: The shares will rank pari passu in all respects with the existing issued ordinary share capital of Highway.

Converse of object

  • swell: The Soviet Republic replied by swelling the ranks of the Red Army to five million and launching the contentious march on Warsaw.
  • attain: He has now attained the rank of Staff Sergeant, and is now serving with a unit in Malaya.
  • join: In September 2004 they joined ranks with the Post Office.

Adjective modifier

serried: The great and the good had come from all over the world and they sat in serried ranks to pay their last homage.

Adjective complement

  • #1: I am ranked #1 for that silly phrase at Google.
  • no.1: Ranked no.1 In East Anglia, and ranked no.
  • ninth: Furthermore, in the first such survey conducted by the International Telecommunication Union in 2003, Taiwan ranked ninth in the digital access category.
  • 8th: The game ended in a surprise 1-1 draw as Germany are ranked 8th in the world and were expected to win this game.
  • 11th: Computer Sciences at Brunel is ranked 11th in the UK according to The Guardian Good University Guide.
  • seventh: Forecourts were ranked seventh out of 14 retail sectors supermarkets were 12th in the new Are You Being Served?

Noun used with modifier

taxi: The taxi rank is along side the terminal building.

Present participle complement

accord: A preliminary investigation produces a list of areas ranked according to the number of occurrences.

Preposition: in

quartile: Leicester was ranked in the top quartile of cities suitable for public sector relocation - the only city to rank in all relocation scenarios.

Preposition: of

  • colonel: Rose to the rank of colonel in the New Model Army and was a close political associate of John Lambert.
  • sergeant: So someone can move from the rank of sergeant up to chief inspector and not actually have had proper, adequate HR training.
  • lieutenant: By 1811 he had reached the rank of lieutenant.

Modifies a noun

  • outsider: Port Vale, MK Dons, Colchester and Blackpool are unfancied 40-1 shots, with Chesterfield rank outsiders at 66-1.
  • passu: The New Ordinary Shares will, when issued and fully paid, rank pari passu in all respects with the Existing Ordinary Shares.
  • correlation: How do I get average ranks for rank correlation and rank sum test?