SINCE 1828

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

the ratings

Definition of the ratings

: numbers that show how many people watch or listen to a particular television or radio program a show that's down in the ratings.

Word by Word Definitions

ratingratings

: a classification according to grade
: a military or naval specialist classification
: a naval enlisted man

See the full definition of rating

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up the ratings? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

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WORD OF THE DAY

waif

play

an extremely thin woman

Words at Play

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We're Down With You Being—or Your Being?—a Square

It's about (you? your?) having your say.

Devilish Words

Don't blame a word use error on the devil.

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How 'Wonderful' Lost Its Sense of Wonder

A case of semantic bleaching

dog-covering-face

Don't Let Reading This Be Another 'Coulda' 'Shoulda' 'Woulda'

PSA: They're three separate words.

Ask the Editors

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Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

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Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

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Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first

Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

Which word entered the English language first?

Take the quiz

Name More Food!

Test your knowledge of food vocabulary!

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Name That Thing

Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

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Word Winder's CrossWinder

Word Winder's CrossWinder

A game of winding words.

Play the game