grade

noun

ˈgrād 

1

a

: a level of study in an elementary, middle, or secondary school that is completed by a student during one year

will enter eleventh grade this year

students in the second grade

b

: the students in the same year of study in elementary, middle, or secondary school

The ninth grade is away on a field trip.

c(1)

: a position in a scale of ranks or qualities

Each grade of steel contains sub-divisions corresponding to steels of different yield stress and impact requirements.

—G. D. Taylor

(2)

: a stage in a process

… we should bear in mind that animals displaying early transitional grades of the structure will seldom continue to exist to the present day, for they will have been supplanted by the very process of perfection through natural selection.

—Charles Darwin

d

: a degree of severity in illness

grade III carcinoma

e

: a military or naval rank

To be prepared for burial Claggart's body was delivered to certain petty-officers of his mess. And … the Master-at-arms was committed to the sea with every funeral honor properly belonging to his naval grade.

—Herman Melville

… her father being a country clergyman who had never reached a higher grade than that of an archdeacon …

—Anthony Trollope

2

a

: a mark indicating a degree of accomplishment in school

earned good grades in school

What was your grade on the math test?

b

: a class of things of the same stage or degree

c

: a standard of food quality

Extra-virgin is the highest grade of olive oil.

—Lisa McManus

3

a

: the degree of inclination of a road or slope

a road with a 6% grade

… one track went straight up the steep hill, the other one turned square off to the right, with a very slight grade.

—Mark Twain

also : a sloping road

The car … toiled up the long, long grades, past Ash Fork, towards Flagstaff, where the forests and quarries are, under the dry, remote skies.

—Rudyard Kipling

b

: a datum or reference level

especially : ground level sense 1a

4

: a domestic animal with one parent purebred and the other of inferior breeding

5

[translation of German Stufe] linguistics : any of the variants of a root or affix (distinguished by a particular vowel or the absence of any vowel) in the ablaut series of an Indo-European language

6

grades plural : the elementary school system

gradeless

ˈgrād-ləs 

adjective

Synonyms of grade

• inch
• chapter
• stage
• phase
• point
• step
• degree
• place

Examples of grade in a Sentence

The fifth grade will perform their annual play this week.

a grade of 90 percent or better

Her grades are up this semester.

an expensive grade of leather

Recent Examples on the Web

Police searched Alvarez and discovered two plates of military-grade body armor in the trunk of his car, according to the criminal complaint. —Los Angeles Times, 30 May 2026

Our explicit goal was to unlock professional-grade BI for a much broader audience. —Rob Collie, Fortune, 29 May 2026

Donald was immersed in newspapers, not only the editorial process but also the stuff of print—typesetting, the quality of ink, the various grades of paper. —David Remnick, New Yorker, 29 May 2026

The other restaurants received an A grade, or a score of at least 90%. —Charlotte Observer, 29 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin gradus step, degree, from Latin gradi to step, go; akin to Lithuanian gridyti to go, wander

First Known Use

1796, in the meaning defined at sense 1c(2)

Phrases Containing grade

• failing grade/mark
• field grade
• grade A
• grade crossing
• grade inflation
• grade point
• grade point average
• grade school
• grade separation
• grade up
• high-grade
• lieutenant junior grade
• low-grade
• make the grade
• pay grade
• zero grade

Rhymes for grade

• aid
• aide
• bade
• blade
• braid
• clade
• accolade
• ambuscade
• antegrade
• balustrade
• barricade
• cannonade

Kids Definition

grade

1 of 2 verb

ˈgrād 

graded; grading

1

: to arrange in grades : sort

grade apples

2

: to make level or evenly sloping

grade a highway

3

: to give a grade to

grade a student's performance

4

: to assign to a grade

5

: to form a series having only slight differences

colors that grade into one another

grade

2 of 2 noun

1

: position in a scale of rank, quality, or order

the grade of sergeant

leather of the highest grade

2

: a stage, step, or degree in a series, order, or ranking

3

: a class of things that are of the same rank, quality, or order

4

a

: a division of the school course representing a year's work

finished the fourth grade

b

: the pupils in a school division

c

plural : the elementary school system

teach in the grades

5

: a mark or rating especially of accomplishment in school

a grade of 90 on a test

6

: a standard of quality

government grades for meat

7

: the degree of slope (as of a road or railroad track)

Medical Definition

grade

noun

ˈgrād 

: a degree of severity of a disease or abnormal condition

a grade III carcinoma