degree

de·gree (d

-gr

)

1. One of a series of steps in a process, course, or progression; a stage: proceeded to the next degree of difficulty.

2. A step in a direct hereditary line of descent or ascent: First cousins are two degrees from their common ancestor.

3. Relative social or official rank, dignity, or position.

4. Relative intensity or amount, as of a quality or attribute: a high degree of accuracy.

5. The extent or measure of a state of being, an action, or a relation: modernized their facilities to a large degree.

6. A unit division of a temperature scale.

7. Mathematics A planar unit of angular measure equal in magnitude to ¹/₃₆₀ of a complete revolution.

8. A unit of latitude or longitude, equal to ¹/₃₆₀ of a great circle.

9. Mathematics

a. The greatest sum of the exponents of the variables in a term of a polynomial or polynomial equation.

b. The exponent of the derivative of highest order in a differential equation in standard form.

10.

a. An academic title given by a college or university to a student who has completed a course of study: received the Bachelor of Arts degree at commencement.

b. A similar title conferred as an honorary distinction.

11. Law A division or classification of a specific crime according to its seriousness: murder in the second degree.

12. A classification of the severity of an injury, especially a burn: a third-degree burn.

13. Grammar One of the forms used in the comparison of adjectives and adverbs. For example, tall is the positive degree, taller the comparative degree, and tallest the superlative degree of the adjective tall.

14. Music

a. One of the seven notes of a diatonic scale.

b. A space or line of the staff.

Idioms:

by degrees

Little by little; gradually.

to a degree

To a small extent; in a limited way: doesn't like spicy food, but can eat a little pepper to a degree.

[Middle English degre, from Old French, from Vulgar Latin *dgradus : Latin d-, de- + Latin gradus, step; see ghredh- in Indo-European roots.]

degree

Noun

1. a stage in a scale of relative amount or intensity: this task involved a greater degree of responsibility

2. an academic award given by a university or college on successful completion of a course

3. Grammar any of the forms of an adjective used to indicate relative amount or intensity

4. a unit of temperature Symbol: °

5. a measure of angle equal to one three-hundred-and-sixtieth of the circumference of a circle Symbol: °

6. a unit of latitude or longitude Symbol: °

7. by degrees little by little; gradually [Latin de- down + gradus step]

degree (d

-gr

)

1. A unit division of a temperature scale.

a. A unit for measuring an angle or an arc of a circle. One degree is ¹/₃₆₀ of the circumference of a circle.

b. This unit used to measure latitude or longitude on the Earth's surface.

3. The greatest sum of the exponents of the variables in a term of a polynomial or polynomial equation. For example, x³ + 2xy + x is of the third degree.

Degree a rank or class of persons in society.

ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms

Noun	1.	degree - a position on a scale of intensity or amount or quality; "a moderate grade of intelligence"; "a high level of care is required"; "it is all a matter of degree" level, grade caliber, calibre, quality - a degree or grade of excellence or worth; "the quality of students has risen"; "an executive of low caliber" property - a basic or essential attribute shared by all members of a class; "a study of the physical properties of atomic particles" intensiveness, intensity - high level or degree; the property of being intense grind - the grade of particle fineness to which a substance is ground; "a coarse grind of coffee" depth - degree of psychological or intellectual profundity highness - a high degree (of amount or force etc.); "responsible for the highness of the rates" high - a lofty level or position or degree; "summer temperatures reached an all-time high" low - a low level or position or degree; "the stock market fell to a new low" lowness - a low or small degree of any quality (amount or force or temperature etc.); "he took advantage of the lowness of interest rates" extreme - the furthest or highest degree of something; "he carried it to extremes" amplitude level - the level on a scale of amplitude moderation, moderateness - quality of being moderate and avoiding extremes immoderateness, immoderation - the quality of being excessive and lacking in moderation SPF, sun protection factor - the degree to which a sunscreen protects the skin from the direct rays of the sun
	2.	degree - a specific identifiable position in a continuum or series or especially in a process; "a remarkable degree of frankness"; "at what stage are the social sciences?" stage, level, point state - the way something is with respect to its main attributes; "the current state of knowledge"; "his state of health"; "in a weak financial state" ladder - ascending stages by which somebody or something can progress; "he climbed the career ladder" acme, meridian, summit, tiptop, superlative, elevation, height, pinnacle, peak, top - the highest level or degree attainable; the highest stage of development; "his landscapes were deemed the acme of beauty"; "the artist's gifts are at their acme"; "at the height of her career"; "the peak of perfection"; "summer was at its peak"; "...catapulted Einstein to the pinnacle of fame"; "the summit of his ambition"; "so many highest superlatives achieved by man"; "at the top of his profession" extent - the point or degree to which something extends; "the extent of the damage"; "the full extent of the law"; "to a certain extent she was right" resultant, end point - the final point in a process standard of life, standard of living - a level of material comfort in terms of goods and services available to someone or some group; "they enjoyed the highest standard of living in the country"; "the lower the standard of living the easier it is to introduce an autocratic production system" plane - a level of existence or development; "he lived on a worldly plane" state of the art - the highest degree of development of an art or technique at a particular time; "the state of the art in space travel" ultimacy, ultimateness - the state or degree of being ultimate; the final or most extreme in degree or size or time or distance, "the ultimacy of these social values" quickening - the stage of pregnancy at which the mother first feels the movements of the fetus climax - the most severe stage of a disease
	3.	degree - an award conferred by a college or university signifying that the recipient has satisfactorily completed a course of study; "he earned his degree at Princeton summa cum laude" academic degree accolade, honor, laurels, honour, award - a tangible symbol signifying approval or distinction; "an award for bravery" associate degree, associate - a degree granted by a two-year college on successful completion of the undergraduates course of studies bachelor's degree, baccalaureate - an academic degree conferred on someone who has successfully completed undergraduate studies honours, honours degree - a university degree with honors master's degree - an academic degree higher than a bachelor's degree but lower than a doctor's degree doctor's degree, doctorate - one of the highest earned academic degrees conferred by a university law degree - degree conferred on someone who successfully completes law school honorary degree, honoris causa - a degree conferred to honor the recipient
	4.	degree - a measure for arcs and angles; "there are 360 degrees in a circle" arcdegree angular unit - a unit of measurement for angles arcminute, minute of arc, minute - a unit of angular distance equal to a 60th of a degree oxtant - a unit of angular distance equal to half a quadrant sextant - a unit of angular distance equal to 60 degrees
	5.	degree - the highest power of a term or variable degree of a term - the sum of the exponents of the variables in the term degree of a polynomial - the degree of the term in the polynomial that has the highest degree first degree - a degree of one; "all of the terms in a linear equation are of the first degree" exponent, index, power - a mathematical notation indicating the number of times a quantity is multiplied by itself
	6.	degree - a unit of temperature on a specified scale; "the game was played in spite of the 40-degree temperature" temperature unit - a unit of measurement for temperature C, degree Celsius, degree centigrade - a degree on the centigrade scale of temperature degree Fahrenheit, F - a degree on the Fahrenheit scale of temperature
	7.	degree - the seriousness of something (e.g., a burn or crime); "murder in the second degree"; "a second degree burn" magnitude - the property of relative size or extent (whether large or small); "they tried to predict the magnitude of the explosion"; "about the magnitude of a small pea"