net

1 a fabric made of strands loosely twisted, knotted, or woven together at regular intervals the basketball didn't go into the basket—it just hit the net Synonyms mesh, netting, network Related Words web, webbing; grille (also grill), lattice, screen, screening, wirework; bobbinet, Brussels lace, filigree, fishnet, lace, marquisette, tulle

2 a device or scheme for capturing another by surprise drug runners caught in an elaborate net set by the police Synonyms ambush, net, snare, webRelated Words enmeshment, entanglement, entrapment, envelopment; booby trap, catch, hazard, land mine, pitfall, snag; artifice, cheat, cheating, deception, double-dealing, duplicity, ploy, ruse, subterfuge, trick

3 something that catches and holds caught in a net of palace intrigues Synonyms entanglement, mesh(es), morass, net, noose, quagmire, quicksand, snare, tanglement, toil(s), trapRelated Words knot, snarl, tangle; cat's cradle, labyrinth, maze; cobweb, spiderweb

1 the amount of money left when expenses are subtracted from the total amount received his net for the year was about 60% of his total income Synonyms earnings, gain, lucre, net, payoff, proceeds, returnRelated Words cleanup, killing, windfall; bottom line; gross, sales; compensation, emolument, income, pay, payment, remittal, requital, salary, wages; interest, return, revenue, yieldNear Antonyms charge, cost, disbursement, expenditure, expense, loss, outgo, outlay

2 the central part or aspect of something under consideration the net of the report on race relations is that things are better but not good enough Synonyms bottom line, bull's-eye, centerpiece, core, essence, gist, heart, kernel, keynote, meat, meat and potatoes, net, nub, nubbin, nucleus, pith, pivot, point, root, sumRelated Words course, direction, drift, tenor; body, content, substance; hypothesis, proposition, purport, subject, theme, thesis

1 to catch or hold as if in a net the kite was stubbornly netted in the branches of the willow tree Synonyms catch up, enmesh (also immesh), ensnare, ensnarl, entoil, entrap, mesh, net, snare, tangle, trapRelated Words bag, birdlime, capture, collar; embroil, implicate, involve, mireNear Antonyms detach, disengage, extricate; clear, free, liberateAntonyms disentangle, untangle

2 to take physical control or possession of (something) suddenly or forcibly a police sting that netted drug dealers from all parts of the city Synonyms bag, capture, collar, cop [slang], corral, get, glom, grab, grapple, hook, land, nab, nail, net, nobble [British slang], rap, seize, snag, snap (up), snare, snatch, trapRelated Words glove, halter, lasso, rope; apprehend, arrest, detain; bay, corner; clasp, clutch, fasten (on), fist, grasp, grip, hold, latch (on or onto), secure; rend, wrest; enmesh (also immesh), ensnare, entangle, entrap, mesh; abduct, kidnap, spirit (away or off)Near Antonyms discharge, free, liberate, release; drop, loosen, unhandAntonyms miss

to receive after charges and deductions have been made the entrepreneur netted millions on that deal Synonyms clear Related Words earn, gain, garner, get, make, realize; cash in (on), rake (in); clean up Near Antonyms gross