: having a high position: such as
a
: of the highest rank
the ranking officer
b
: being next to the chairman in seniority
ranking committee member
plural rankings
: position, order, or standing within a group : rank
The figures, compiled from federal surveys and a tourism research concern, earned New York City a second-place ranking nationwide as a destination for United States travelers, pushing Las Vegas down to the No. 3 spot.—
Eric Lipton
Eric Lipton… if a site is linked to by sites of high quality and popularity, those links can raise the ranking of the first site.—Elizabeth Stone
Elizabeth StonePlaying primarily in regional events, she earned a ranking of No. 151, high enough to make the qualifying field at Roland Garros.—L. Jon Wertheim
L. Jon Wertheim… he had the lowest interception rate and the highest ranking of any NFL quarterback …—Paul Zimmerman
Paul ZimmermanExamples of ranking in a Sentence
Adjective
Who is the ranking officer here?
the country's ranking law school
Noun
in one ranking of the best places to live, San Francisco surpassed all the other cities in the U.S.
the President's ranking in the polls is at its highest level since he took office
Recent Examples on the Web
Barney Henderson, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Oct. 2025
As state superintendent, Underly is Wisconsin’s highest ranking education official.
—Danielle Duclos, jsonline.com, 17 Oct. 2025
Gary Trust, Billboard, 20 Oct. 2025
Four teams in the top 10 of the US LBM Coaches Poll fell in Week 8 that led to a major shakeup of the rankings.
—Eddie Timanus, USA Today, 20 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ranking
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Adjective
More than 4 million members of the 99-million-strong party have faced probes, from the most junior to the highest ranking officials.
—Barney Henderson, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Oct. 2025
As state superintendent, Underly is Wisconsin’s highest ranking education official.
—Danielle Duclos, jsonline.com, 17 Oct. 2025
Noun
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings.
—Gary Trust, Billboard, 20 Oct. 2025
Four teams in the top 10 of the US LBM Coaches Poll fell in Week 8 that led to a major shakeup of the rankings.
—Eddie Timanus, USA Today, 20 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ranking
Cite this Entry
“Ranking.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ranking. Accessed 22 Oct. 2025.
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