grid

noun

ˈgrid 

1

: grating

2

a(1)

: a perforated or ridged metal plate used as a conductor in a storage battery

(2)

: an electrode consisting of a mesh or a spiral of fine wire in an electron tube

(3)

: a network of conductors for distribution of electric power

also : a network of radio or television stations

b

: a network of uniformly spaced horizontal and perpendicular lines (as for locating points on a map)

also : something resembling such a network

a road grid

c

: gridiron sense 3

broadly : football

3

: the starting positions of cars on a racecourse

4

: a device in a photocomposer on which are located the characters to be exposed as the text is composed

Examples of grid in a Sentence

The students plotted points on a grid.

The city streets form a grid.

Recent Examples on the Web

Viridi stated that the partnership represents a significant step in its mission to bring safe, reliable battery energy storage to the infrastructure applications that matter most, from grid modernization research to real-world utility deployment. — Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 3 Aug. 2026

However, Iraq faces a complex balancing act, given its deep existing ties with both Iran, which supplies its power grid, and China, a major oil investor and buyer. — Ken Silverstein, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026

To explain its results, RealorRender identifies the suspicious regions of images as heatmaps (grids of colored squares indicating intensity, as with topographical maps) and segments of contiguous image elements. — New Atlas, 2 Aug. 2026

It’s been less than a year since Georgia Power’s regulator said the utility could double the size of its power grid and build new power plants, solar arrays and battery storage because of all the data centers slated to come here. — Kristi Swartz, AJC.com, 31 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from gridiron

First Known Use

1839, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing grid

• cattle grid
• micro-grid
• off-grid
• off-the-grid

Rhymes for grid

• bid
• did
• hid
• id
• lid
• mid
• quid
• rid
• skid
• slid
• squid
• amid

Kids Definition

grid

noun

ˈgrid 

1

: grating sense 1

2

: a metal plate used as a conductor in a storage battery

3

: an element of an electron tube consisting of a network of fine wire

4

: a network of horizontal and perpendicular lines (as for locating points on a map using coordinates or for counting a sample of particles or organisms on a microscope slide)

5

: a network of conductors for distribution of electrical power

also : a network of radio or television stations