ground¹

(ground)

a. The solid surface of the earth.

b. The floor of a body of water, especially the sea.

2. Soil; earth: level the ground for a lawn.

3. often grounds An area of land designated for a particular purpose: a burial ground; parade grounds.

4. often grounds The land surrounding or forming part of a house or another building: a guesthouse on the grounds of the mansion.

5. An area or a position that is contested in or as if in battle: The soldiers held their ground against the enemy. Character witnesses helped the defendant stand her ground in the trial.

6. Something that serves as a foundation or means of attachment for something else: a ground of white paint under the mural.

7. A surrounding area; a background.

8. often grounds The foundation for an argument, belief, or action; a basis.

9. often grounds The underlying condition prompting an action; a cause: grounds for suspicion; a ground for divorce. See Synonyms at base¹.

10. An area of reference or discussion; a subject: The professor covered new ground in every lecture.

11. grounds

a. The sediment at or from the bottom of a liquid: coffee grounds.

b. Particles of ground coffee beans for use in making coffee for drinking.

12. Electricity

a. A large conducting body, such as the earth or an electric circuit connected to the earth, used as an arbitrary zero of potential.

b. A conducting object, such as a wire, that is connected to such a position of zero potential.

13. A mesh background upon which patterns are worked in lace-making.

v. ground·ed, ground·ing, grounds

v.tr.

1. To place on or cause to touch the ground.

2. To provide a basis for (a theory, for example); justify.

3. To supply with basic information; instruct in fundamentals.

a. To prevent (an aircraft or a pilot) from flying.

b. Informal To restrict (someone) especially to a certain place as a punishment.

5. Electricity To connect (an electric circuit) to a ground.

6. Nautical To run (a vessel) aground.

a. Baseball To hit (a ball) onto the ground.

b. Football To throw (a ball) to the ground in order to stop play and avoid being tackled behind the line of scrimmage.

v.intr.

1. To touch or reach the ground.

2. Baseball To hit a ground ball: grounded to the second baseman.

3. Nautical To run aground.

Phrasal Verb:

ground out Baseball

To be put out by hitting a ground ball that is fielded and thrown to first base.

Idioms:

drive/run into the ground

To belabor (an issue or a subject).

from the ground up

From the most basic level to the highest level; completely: designed the house from the ground up; learned the family business from the ground up.

off the ground

Under way, as if in flight: Because of legal difficulties, the construction project never got off the ground.

on (one's) own ground

In a situation where one has knowledge or competence: a sculptor back on her own ground after experiments with painting.

on the ground

At a place that is exciting, interesting, or important: a reporter who wanted to be on the ground when the story broke.

to ground

1. Into a den or burrow: a fox going to ground.

2. Into hiding.

[Middle English, from Old English grund.]

ground²

(ground)

Past tense and past participle of grind.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun	1.	grounds - your basis for belief or disbelief; knowledge on which to base belief; "the evidence that smoking causes lung cancer is very compelling" evidence information - knowledge acquired through study or experience or instruction probable cause - (law) evidence sufficient to warrant an arrest or search and seizure; "a magistrate determined that there was probable cause to search the house" cogent evidence, proof - any factual evidence that helps to establish the truth of something; "if you have any proof for what you say, now is the time to produce it" disproof, falsification, refutation - any evidence that helps to establish the falsity of something track, trail, lead - evidence pointing to a possible solution; "the police are following a promising lead"; "the trail led straight to the perpetrator" symptom - (medicine) any sensation or change in bodily function that is experienced by a patient and is associated with a particular disease sign - (medicine) any objective evidence of the presence of a disorder or disease; "there were no signs of asphyxiation"
	2.	grounds - the enclosed land around a house or other building; "it was a small house with almost no yard" curtilage, yard backyard - the grounds in back of a house dooryard - a yard outside the front or rear door of a house front yard - the yard in front of a house; between the house and the street garden - a yard or lawn adjoining a house playground - yard consisting of an outdoor area for children's play side yard - the grounds at either side of a house field - a piece of land cleared of trees and usually enclosed; "he planted a field of wheat"
	3.	grounds - a tract of land cleared for some special purposes (recreation or burial etc.) parcel of land, piece of ground, piece of land, tract, parcel - an extended area of land
	4.	grounds - a justification for something existing or happening; "he had no cause to complain"; "they had good reason to rejoice" cause, reason justification - a statement in explanation of some action or belief
	5.	grounds - dregs consisting of solid particles (especially of coffee) that form a residue; "it is a Middle Eastern custom to read your future in your coffee grounds" coffee grounds - the dregs remaining after brewing coffee dregs, settlings - sediment that has settled at the bottom of a liquid