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gain ground

 - 13 dictionary results

gain

1  [geyn]
Use gain ground in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to get (something desired), esp. as a result of one's efforts: to gain possession of an object; to gain permission to enter a country.
2. to acquire as an increase or addition: to gain weight; to gain speed.
3. to obtain as a profit: He gained ten dollars by this deal.
4. to win; get in competition: to gain the prize.
5. to win (someone) to one's own side or point of view; persuade (sometimes fol. by over): to gain supporters.
6. (of a watch or clock) to run fast by (a specified amount): My watch gains six minutes a day.
7. to reach, esp. by effort; get to; arrive at: to gain one's destination.
–verb (used without object)
8. to improve; make progress; advance: to gain in health after an illness.
9. to get nearer, as in pursuit (usually fol. by on or upon): Our horse was gaining on the favorite at the far turn.
10. to draw away from or farther ahead of the other contestants in a race, one's pursuers, etc. (usually fol. by on or upon).
11. (of a watch or clock) to run fast.
–noun
12. profit or advantage.
13. an increase or advance.
14. gains, profits or winnings.
15. the act of gaining; acquisition.
16. Electronics.
a. a measure of the increase in signal amplitude produced by an amplifier, expressed as the ratio of output to input.
b. the effectiveness of a directional antenna as compared with a standard, nondirectional one.
17. the volume control of a radio, phonograph, amplifier, etc.
—Idioms
18. gain ground, to progress or advance, as in value, strength, or achievement: The company's new products are gaining ground in suburban areas.
19. gain time, to arrange a postponement or delay for a particular purpose, esp. by roundabout means.
Origin:
1425–75; late ME (n.) < MF, contr. of OF gaaing, n. deriv of gaaignier to till, earn, win < Gmc; cf. OHG weidanōn to hunt, forage for food

Related forms:
gain⋅a⋅ble, adjective

Synonyms:
1. procure. Gain, attain, earn, win imply obtaining a reward or something advantageous. Gain carries the least suggestion of method or of effort expended. Attain emphasizes the reaching of a goal. Earn emphasizes the exertions and labor expended that deserve reward. Win emphasizes attainment in spite of competition or opposition. 7. attain. 13. addition, increment, acquisition.

Antonyms:
1. lose.

ground

1  [ground]
–noun
1. the solid surface of the earth; firm or dry land: to fall to the ground.
2. earth or soil: stony ground.
3. land having an indicated character: rising ground.
4. Often, grounds. a tract of land appropriated to a special use: picnic grounds; a hunting ground.
5. Often, grounds. the foundation or basis on which a belief or action rests; reason or cause: grounds for dismissal.
6. subject for discussion; topic: Sex education is forbidden ground in some school curricula.
7. rational or factual support for one's position or attitude, as in a debate or argument: on firm ground; on shaky ground.
8. the main surface or background in painting, decorative work, lace, etc.
9. Fine Arts.
a. a coating of some substance serving as a surface for paint, ink, or other media in art: Lead white is a traditional ground for oil paintings.
b. ground color (def. 2).
10. (in perception) the background in a visual field, contrasted with the figure.
11. Also called etching ground. an acid-resistant substance, composed of wax, gum, and resin in varying proportions, applied to the entire surface of an etching plate and through which the design is drawn with an etching needle.
12. grounds, dregs or sediment: coffee grounds.
13. grounds, the gardens, lawn, etc., surrounding and belonging to a building.
14. Electricity. a conducting connection between an electric circuit or equipment and the earth or some other conducting body.
15. Music. ground bass.
16. Nautical. the bottom of a body of water.
17. the earth's solid or liquid surface; land or water.
18. Carpentry.
a. a strip of wood to which woodwork can be attached, set flush with the plaster finish of a room.
b. a strip of wood or length of corner bead used at an opening as a stop for plasterwork.
–adjective
19. situated on or at, or adjacent to, the surface of the earth: a ground attack.
20. pertaining to the ground.
21. Military. operating on land: ground forces.
–verb (used with object)
22. to lay or set on the ground.
23. to place on a foundation; fix firmly; settle or establish; found.
24. to instruct in elements or first principles: to ground students in science.
25. to furnish with a ground or background, as on decorative work.
26. to cover (wallpaper) with colors or other materials before printing.
27. Electricity. to establish a ground for (a circuit, device, etc.).
28. Nautical. to cause (a vessel) to run aground.
29. Aeronautics. to restrict (an aircraft or the like) to the ground because of bad weather, the unsatisfactory condition of the aircraft, etc.
30. to forbid (a pilot) to fly because of bad health, failure to comply with safety regulations, or the like.
31. Informal. to put out of action or make unable to participate: The quarterback was grounded by a knee injury.
32. Informal. to restrict the activities, esp. the social activities, of: I can't go to the party—my parents have grounded me until my grades improve.
–verb (used without object)
33. to come to or strike the ground.
34. Baseball.
a. to hit a ground ball.
b. to ground out.
—Verb phrase
35. ground out, Baseball. to be put out at first base after hitting a ground ball to the infield.
—Idioms
36. break ground,
a. to plow.
b. to begin excavation for a construction project.
c. to begin upon or take preparatory measures for any undertaking.
37. cover ground,
a. to pass or travel over a certain area.
b. to make a certain amount of progress in dealing with a piece of work, subject, treatise, or the like: He talked for two hours without covering much ground.
38. cut the ground from under, to render (an argument, position, person, etc.) ineffective or invalid; refute: It didn't require much effort to cut the ground from under that case.
39. from the ground up,
a. gradually from the most elementary level to the highest level: She learned the business from the ground up.
b. extensively; thoroughly: The professor knew his subject from the ground up.
40. gain ground,
a. to make progress; advance.
b. to gain approval or acceptance: The case for air-pollution control is gaining ground throughout the country.
41. give ground, to yield to force or forceful argument; retreat: The disarmament talks reached an impasse when neither side would give ground on inspection proposals.
42. hold or stand one's ground, to maintain one's position; be steadfast: The referee stood his ground, though his decision was hotly contested by the crowd.
43. into the ground, beyond a reasonable or necessary point: You've stated your case, and you needn't run it into the ground.
44. lose ground,
a. to retreat or be forced back.
b. to lose one's advantage; suffer a reverse.
c. to wane in popularity or acceptance; begin to fail: Our candidate is losing ground in industrial areas.
45. off the ground, Informal. into action or well under way: The play never got off the ground.
46. on one's own ground, in an area or situation that one knows well.
47. on the ground, at the place of interest or importance; actively engaged: Minutes after the bank robbery reporters were on the ground to get the story.
48. shift ground, to change position in an argument or situation.
49. suit down to the ground, to be perfectly satisfactory; please greatly: This climate suits me down to the ground.
50. take the ground, Nautical. to become grounded at low water.
51. to ground,
a. into a den, burrow, shelter, or the like: a fox gone to ground.
b. into concealment or hiding: Rather than take the witness stand, she went to ground in another country.
Origin:
bef. 900; (n.) ME grownd, grund, OE grund; c. D grond, G Grund; (v.) ME grundien, grownden to set on a foundation, establish, deriv. of the n.

Related forms:
ground⋅a⋅ble, adjective
ground⋅a⋅bly, adverb
ground⋅ed⋅ly, adverb
ground⋅ed⋅ness, noun
groundward, groundwards, adverb, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To gain ground
gain 1   (gān)   
v.   gained, gain·ing, gains

v.   tr.

  1. To come into possession or use of; acquire: gained a small fortune in real estate; gained vital information about the enemy's plans.

  2. To attain in competition or struggle; win: gained a decisive victory; gained control of the company.

  3. To obtain through effort or merit; achieve: gain recognition; gain a hearing for the proposal.

  4. To secure as profit or reward; earn: gain a living; gain extra credits in school.

    1. To manage to achieve an increase of: a movement that gained strength; gained wisdom with age.

    2. To increase by (a specific amount): gained 15 pounds; the market gained 30 points.

  6. To come to; reach: gained the top of the mountain. See Synonyms at reach.

  7. To become fast by (a specified amount of time). Used of a timepiece: My watch gains four minutes a day.

v.   intr.

  1. To increase; grow: gained in experience and maturity; a painting that gained in value.

  2. To become better; improve: gaining in health.

  3. To obtain a profit or advantage; benefit: stood to gain politically by his opponent's blunder.

    1. To close a gap; get closer: The runners in the back gained steadily on the leader.

    2. To increase a lead.

  5. To put on weight: I began to gain when I went off my diet.

  6. To operate or run fast. Used of a timepiece.

n.  

    1. Something gained or acquired: territorial gains.

    2. Progress; advancement: The country made economic gains under the new government.

  2. The act of acquiring; attainment.

  3. An increase in amount or degree: a gain in operating income.

  4. Electronics An increase in signal power, voltage, or current by an amplifier, expressed as the ratio of output to input. Also called amplification.


[From Middle English gayne, booty (from Old French gaigne, gain, gain, from gaaignier, to gain, of Germanic origin; see weiə- in Indo-European roots) and Middle English gein, advantage (from Old Norse gegn, ready, and from Old French gain, gain).]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

gain 
1496 (n.), 1530 (v.), from M.Fr. gain, from O.Fr. gaaigne, from gaaignier "to gain," also "cultivate land," from Frank. *waidanjan "hunt, forage," also "graze, pasture," from P.Gmc. *wartho "hunting ground" (cf. Ger. weide "pasture, pasturage," O.N. veiðr "hunting"), from PIE *wei "to strive after." The original O.Fr. sense enfolded the notions of "profit from agriculture" and "booty, prey."

ground 
O.E. grund "foundation, ground, surface of the earth," especially "bottom of the sea" (a sense preserved in run aground), from P.Gmc. *grundus, which seems to have meant "deep place" (cf. O.Fris. grund, Du. grond, Ger. Grund "ground, soil, bottom;" O.N. grunn "a shallow place, grund "field, plain," grunnr "bottom"). No known cognates outside Gmc. Sense of "reason, motive" first attested c.1205; electrical sense is from 1870. Grounds "residue at the bottom of a liquid" (1340) is perhaps from past tense of grind (q.v.). Meaning "deny privileges" is 1940s, originally a punishment meted out to pilots (in which sense it is attested from 1931). Ground-hog is attested from 1784; Ground Hog Day first recorded 1871, Amer.Eng. Groundwork (1550) is originally "the solid base on which a structure is built;" fig. sense is from 1557. Groundling "theater patron in the pit" is from 1602, from the beginning emblematic of bad or unsophisticated taste.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Financial Dictionary

gain

The excess of the amount received as opposed to the amount expended in a transaction. For example, receipt of $4,500 from the sale of an asset with a book value of $3,000 results in a gain of $1,500. Compare loss.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: gain
Function: noun
1 : an increase in value, capital, or amount —compare LOSS
capital gain
: a gain realized on the sale or exchange of a capital asset (as a stock or real estate)
ca·su·al·ty gain
: a gain realized by an insured because property insurance benefits paid for a loss from a casualty or theft are greater than the adjusted value of the insured asset
long–term capital gain
: a capital gain realized on the sale or exchange of an asset held for more than a specified period (as a year)
ordinary gain
: a gain from the exchange or sale of an asset that is not capital
short–term capital gain
: a capital gain realized on the sale or exchange of an asset held for less than a specified period (as a year) that is treated as ordinary income under federal income tax laws
2 plural in the civil law of Louisiana : a class of community property that reflects the increase in property value contributed by the common skill or labor of the spouses —gain verb

Main Entry: ground
Function: transitive verb
: to furnish a ground for : set on a basis grounded the disclosure requirement in negligence law —Scott v. Bradford, 606 Pacific Reporter, Second Series 554 (1979)> grounded on erroneous assumptions>
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: gain
Pronunciation: 'gAn
Function: intransitive verb
: to improve in health gained daily>

Main Entry: ground
past and past participle of GRIND
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

gain (gān)
n.

  1. An increase in amount or degree.

  2. Progress; advancement.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Science Dictionary
ground   (ground)  Pronunciation Key 

  1. A connection between an electrical conductor and the Earth. Grounds are used to establish a common zero-voltage reference for electric devices in order to prevent potentially dangerous voltages from arising between them and other objects. Also called earth.

  2. The set of shared points in an electrical circuit at which the measured voltage is taken to be zero. The ground is usually connected directly to the power supply and acts as a common "sink" for current flowing through the components in the circuit.


The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Idioms & Phrases

gain ground

  1. Advance, make progress; also, win acceptance. For example, The new conservation policy is gaining ground among the voters. This expression alludes to a military advance in which an army literally takes territory from the enemy. Its figurative use dates from about 1800. For an antonym, see lose ground.

  2. gain ground on or upon. Encroach on, advance at the expense of. For example, Door-to-door canvassing helped them gain ground on the opposition.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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