rank

nl-adj

rank (comparative ranker, superlative rankst)

ranker (comparative)
rankst (superlative)
rank (adverbial positive predicative)
ranker (adverbial comparative predicative)
het rankst (adverbial predicative superlative)
het rankste (adverbial predicative superlative)
ranke (feminine indefinite masculine positive singular)
rankere (comparative feminine indefinite masculine singular)
rankste (feminine indefinite masculine singular superlative)
rank (indefinite neuter positive singular)
ranker (comparative indefinite neuter singular)
rankste (indefinite neuter singular superlative)
ranke (indefinite plural positive)
rankere (comparative indefinite plural)
rankste (indefinite plural superlative)
ranke (definite positive)
rankere (comparative definite)
rankste (definite superlative)
ranks (partitive positive)
rankers (comparative partitive)

From Middle Dutch ranc, from Old Dutch *ranc, from Proto-West Germanic *rank, from Proto-Germanic *rankaz.


rank

an object or ornamental pattern resembling a stem

nl-noun

rank f (plural ranken, diminutive rankje n)

ranken (plural)
rankje (diminutive neuter)

From Middle Dutch ranc, ranke, from Old Dutch *ranca, from Proto-West Germanic [Term?]. Cognate with Old High German hranca (German Ranke).


rank

rank land

fow Sprat or Fullum Barley, which is the best for rank Land, because it doth not run ſo much to Straw

1707, J[ohn] Mortimer, The Whole Art of Husbandry; or, The Way of Managing and Improving of Land. […], London: […] J[ohn] H[umphreys] for H[enry] Mortlock […], and J[onathan] Robinson […], →OCLC:

(obsolete) Strong; powerful; capable of acting or being used with great effect; energetic; vigorous; headstrong.

Strong in growth; growing with vigour or rapidity, hence, coarse or gross.

Causing strong growth; producing luxuriantly; rich and fertile.

The moon had spread over everything a thin layer of silver—over the rank grass, over the mud, upon the wall of matted vegetation standing higher than the wall of a temple […]

1899 February, Joseph Conrad, “The Heart of Darkness”, in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, volume CLXV, number M, New York, N.Y.: The Leonard Scott Publishing Company, […], →OCLC, part I:

Suffering from overgrowth or hypertrophy; plethoric.

rank grass

rank weeds

And, behold, seven ears of corn came up upon one stalk, rank and good.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Genesis 41:5:

The hovel stood in the centre of what had once been a vegetable garden, but was now a patch of rank weeds. Surrounding this, almost like a zareba, was an irregular ring of gorse and brambles, an unclaimed vestige of the original common.

1944, Miles Burton, chapter 5, in The Three Corpse Trick:

Your gym clothes are rank, bro – when'd you last wash 'em?

Divers sea fowls taste rank of the fish on which they ordinarily feed.

1661, Robert Boyle, “(please specify the page)”, in The Sceptical Chymist: or Chymico-physical Doubts & Paradoxes, […], London: […] J. Cadwell for J. Crooke, […], →OCLC:

Strong to the senses; offensive; noisome.

Having a very strong and bad taste or odor.

If Safford happens to be driving a "rank" horse, one that insists on getting away fast, he goes along with the rest, […]

1949, The New Yorker (volume 25, part 3, page 46)

(horse racing) Headstrong; difficult to control.

rank treason

rank nonsense

I am a rank amateur as a wordsmith.

England's domination of the first half was almost total, but they somehow contrived to allow Tunisia to raise themselves off the floor by virtue of rank carelessness from [Gareth] Southgate's side.

2018 June 18, Phil McNulty, “Tunisia 1 – 2 England”, in BBC Sport, archived from the original on 2019-04-21:

Chelsea remain rank outsiders to retain their crown and they still lie 12 points adrift of United, but Ancelotti will regard this as a performance that supports his insistence that they can still have a say when the major prizes are handed out this season.

2011 March 1, Phil McNulty, “Chelsea 2-1 Man Utd”, in BBC:

(intensifier, negative) complete, unmitigated, utter.

the ewes being rank,
In end of autumn turned to the rams

c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii]:

en-adj

rank (comparative ranker or more rank, superlative rankest or most rank)

ranker (comparative)
more rank (comparative)
rankest (superlative)
most rank (superlative)

From Middle English rank (“strong, proud”), from Old English ranc (“proud, haughty, arrogant, insolent, forward, overbearing, showy, ostentatious, splendid, bold, valiant, noble, brave, strong, full-grown, mature”), from Proto-West Germanic *rank, from Proto-Germanic *rankaz (“straight”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- (“straight, direct”). Cognate with Dutch rank (“slender, slim”), Low German rank (“slender, projecting, lank”), Danish rank (“straight, erect, slender”), Swedish rank (“slender, shaky, wonky”), Icelandic rakkur (“straight, slender, bold, valiant”).


rank

The seely man seeing him ryde so rancke, / And ayme at him, fell flat to ground for feare […].

1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book II, Canto III”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:

That rides so rank and bends his lance so fell.

1600, [Torquato Tasso], “(please specify |book=1 to 20)”, in Edward Fairefax [i.e., Edward Fairfax], transl., Godfrey of Bulloigne, or The Recouerie of Ierusalem. […], London: […] Ar[nold] Hatfield, for I[saac] Iaggard and M[atthew] Lownes, →OCLC:

(obsolete) Quickly, eagerly, impetuously.

en-adv

rank (comparative more rank, superlative most rank)

more rank (comparative)
most rank (superlative)


rank

The front rank kneeled to reload while the second rank fired over their heads.

The Musketeers being on both flancks, firſt firing let the Ranck ſtand, and fire every Ranck, paſſing through before his leader[…]

1684, Richard Elton, The compleat body of the Art Military […] , 2nd edition, page 196:

Then there was no more cover, for they straggled out, not in ranks but clusters, from among orange trees and tall, flowering shrubs[…].

1907 January, Harold Bindloss, chapter 7, in The Dust of Conflict, 1st Canadian edition, Toronto, Ont.: McLeod & Allen, →OCLC:

A row of people or things organized in a grid pattern, often soldiers.

(chess) One of the eight horizontal lines of squares on a chessboard (i.e., those identified by a number).

(music) In a pipe organ, a set of pipes of a certain quality for which each pipe corresponds to one key or pedal.

Based on your test scores, you have a rank of 23.

The fancy hotel was of the first rank.

One's position in a list sorted by a shared property such as physical location, population, or quality.

The level of one's position in a class-based society.

a membership drawn from the ranks of wealthy European businessmen

Earlier this month police in Norfolk were called after five hives thought to contain around 60,000 bees and £600 worth of honey were taken. [...] Suspicions among beekeepers that the culprits come from their own ranks were underlined by the fact that a bee smoker was left at the scene by someone who presumably knew that it could be used to calm the insects before taking them.

2017 September 23, “From north Wales to Norfolk, distraught beekeepers ask: who’s stealing our hives?”, in The Observer:

(typically in the plural) A category of people, such as those who share an occupation or belong to an organisation.

Private First Class (PFC) is the second-lowest rank in the Marines.

He rose up through the ranks of the company, from mailroom clerk to CEO.

A hierarchical level in an organization such as the military.

Phylum is the taxonomic rank below kingdom and above class.

(taxonomy) A level in a scientific taxonomy system.

(mathematics) The dimensionality of an array (computing) or tensor.

(linear algebra) The maximal number of linearly independent columns (or rows) of a matrix.

linearly independent
linearly independent

(algebra) The maximum quantity of D-linearly independent elements of a module (over an integral domain D).

(mathematics) The size of any basis of a given matroid.

en-noun

rank (countable and uncountable, plural ranks)

хоризонта́ла

chess: one of the horizontal lines of squares

rivit

in plural: category of people, such as those who share an occupation

From Middle English rank (“line, row”), from Old French ranc, rang, reng (“line, row, rank”) (Modern French rang), from Frankish *hring (“ring”), from Proto-Germanic *hringaz (“something bent or curved”).
Akin to Old High German (h)ring, Old Frisian hring, Old English hring, hrincg (“ring”), Old Norse hringr (“ring, circle, queue, sword; ship”). Doublet of ring and rink.


rank

Their defense ranked third in the league.

I vex my heart with fancies dim:
He still outstript me in the race;
It was but unity of place
That made me dream I rank’d with him.

1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, Canto XLI, page 64:

Ranking all things under general and special heads.

1725, Isaac Watts, Logick: Or, The Right Use of Reason in the Enquiry after Truth, […], 2nd edition, London: […] John Clark and Richard Hett, […], Emanuel Matthews, […], and Richard Ford, […], published 1726, →OCLC:

Poets were ranked in the class of philosophers.

1725–1726, Homer, “(please specify the book or chapter of the Odyssey)”, in [William Broome, Elijah Fenton, Alexander Pope], transl., The Odyssey of Homer. […], London: […] Bernard Lintot, →OCLC:

Heresy [is] ranked with idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, murders, and other sins of the flesh.

1667, attributed to Richard Allestree, The Causes of the Decay of Christian Piety. […], London: […] R. Norton for T. Garthwait, […], →OCLC:

From time to time the coaches of the Lötschberg Railway itself, which in comfort and décor can rank with the finest in Europe today, travel far from the frontiers of Switzerland on through workings such as these.

1960 December, Cecil J. Allen, “Operating a mountain main line: the Bern-Lötschberg-Simplon: Part One”, in Trains Illustrated, page 743:

To assign a suitable place in a class or order; to classify.

en-verb

rank (third-person singular simple present ranks, present participle ranking, simple past and past participle ranked)

ranks (present singular third-person)
ranking (participle present)
ranked (participle past)
ranked (past)


rank

(poetic, dated, except in the phrase rank und schlank) lithe, lissome

de-adj

rank (strong nominative masculine singular ranker, comparative ranker, superlative am ranksten)

ranker (masculine nominative singular strong)
ranker (comparative)
am ranksten (superlative)
rank (masculine predicative singular)
rank (feminine predicative singular)
rank (neuter predicative singular)
rank (plural predicative)
ranker (masculine nominative singular strong without-article)
ranke (feminine nominative singular strong without-article)
rankes (neuter nominative singular strong without-article)
ranke (nominative plural strong without-article)
ranken (genitive masculine singular strong without-article)
ranker (feminine genitive singular strong without-article)
ranken (genitive neuter singular strong without-article)
ranker (genitive plural strong without-article)
rankem (dative masculine singular strong without-article)
ranker (dative feminine singular strong without-article)
rankem (dative neuter singular strong without-article)
ranken (dative plural strong without-article)
ranken (accusative masculine singular strong without-article)
ranke (accusative feminine singular strong without-article)
rankes (accusative neuter singular strong without-article)
ranke (accusative plural strong without-article)
der ranke (definite includes-article masculine nominative singular weak)
die ranke (definite feminine includes-article nominative singular weak)
das ranke (definite includes-article neuter nominative singular weak)
die ranken (definite includes-article nominative plural weak)
des ranken (definite genitive includes-article masculine singular weak)
der ranken (definite feminine genitive includes-article singular weak)
des ranken (definite genitive includes-article neuter singular weak)
der ranken (definite genitive includes-article plural weak)
dem ranken (dative definite includes-article masculine singular weak)
der ranken (dative definite feminine includes-article singular weak)
dem ranken (dative definite includes-article neuter singular weak)
den ranken (dative definite includes-article plural weak)
den ranken (accusative definite includes-article masculine singular weak)
die ranke (accusative definite feminine includes-article singular weak)
das ranke (accusative definite includes-article neuter singular weak)
die ranken (accusative definite includes-article plural weak)
ein ranker (includes-article indefinite masculine mixed nominative singular)
eine ranke (feminine includes-article indefinite mixed nominative singular)
ein rankes (includes-article indefinite mixed neuter nominative singular)
ranken (indefinite mixed nominative plural)
keine ranken (includes-article indefinite mixed negative nominative plural)
eines ranken (genitive includes-article indefinite masculine mixed singular)
einer ranken (feminine genitive includes-article indefinite mixed singular)
eines ranken (genitive includes-article indefinite mixed neuter singular)
ranken (genitive indefinite mixed plural)
keiner ranken (genitive includes-article indefinite mixed negative plural)
einem ranken (dative includes-article indefinite masculine mixed singular)
einer ranken (dative feminine includes-article indefinite mixed singular)
einem ranken (dative includes-article indefinite mixed neuter singular)
ranken (dative indefinite mixed plural)
keinen ranken (dative includes-article indefinite mixed negative plural)
einen ranken (accusative includes-article indefinite masculine mixed singular)
eine ranke (accusative feminine includes-article indefinite mixed singular)
ein rankes (accusative includes-article indefinite mixed neuter singular)
ranken (accusative indefinite mixed plural)
keine ranken (accusative includes-article indefinite mixed negative plural)
ranker (comparative masculine predicative singular)
ranker (comparative feminine predicative singular)
ranker (comparative neuter predicative singular)
ranker (comparative plural predicative)
rankerer (comparative masculine nominative singular strong without-article)
rankere (comparative feminine nominative singular strong without-article)
rankeres (comparative neuter nominative singular strong without-article)
rankere (comparative nominative plural strong without-article)
rankeren (comparative genitive masculine singular strong without-article)
rankerer (comparative feminine genitive singular strong without-article)
rankeren (comparative genitive neuter singular strong without-article)
rankerer (comparative genitive plural strong without-article)
rankerem (comparative dative masculine singular strong without-article)
rankerer (comparative dative feminine singular strong without-article)
rankerem (comparative dative neuter singular strong without-article)
rankeren (comparative dative plural strong without-article)
rankeren (accusative comparative masculine singular strong without-article)
rankere (accusative comparative feminine singular strong without-article)
rankeres (accusative comparative neuter singular strong without-article)
rankere (accusative comparative plural strong without-article)
der rankere (comparative definite includes-article masculine nominative singular weak)
die rankere (comparative definite feminine includes-article nominative singular weak)
das rankere (comparative definite includes-article neuter nominative singular weak)
die rankeren (comparative definite includes-article nominative plural weak)
des rankeren (comparative definite genitive includes-article masculine singular weak)
der rankeren (comparative definite feminine genitive includes-article singular weak)
des rankeren (comparative definite genitive includes-article neuter singular weak)
der rankeren (comparative definite genitive includes-article plural weak)
dem rankeren (comparative dative definite includes-article masculine singular weak)
der rankeren (comparative dative definite feminine includes-article singular weak)
dem rankeren (comparative dative definite includes-article neuter singular weak)
den rankeren (comparative dative definite includes-article plural weak)
den rankeren (accusative comparative definite includes-article masculine singular weak)
die rankere (accusative comparative definite feminine includes-article singular weak)
das rankere (accusative comparative definite includes-article neuter singular weak)
die rankeren (accusative comparative definite includes-article plural weak)
ein rankerer (comparative includes-article indefinite masculine mixed nominative singular)
eine rankere (comparative feminine includes-article indefinite mixed nominative singular)
ein rankeres (comparative includes-article indefinite mixed neuter nominative singular)
rankeren (comparative indefinite mixed nominative plural)
keine rankeren (comparative includes-article indefinite mixed negative nominative plural)
eines rankeren (comparative genitive includes-article indefinite masculine mixed singular)
einer rankeren (comparative feminine genitive includes-article indefinite mixed singular)
eines rankeren (comparative genitive includes-article indefinite mixed neuter singular)
rankeren (comparative genitive indefinite mixed plural)
keiner rankeren (comparative genitive includes-article indefinite mixed negative plural)
einem rankeren (comparative dative includes-article indefinite masculine mixed singular)
einer rankeren (comparative dative feminine includes-article indefinite mixed singular)
einem rankeren (comparative dative includes-article indefinite mixed neuter singular)
rankeren (comparative dative indefinite mixed plural)
keinen rankeren (comparative dative includes-article indefinite mixed negative plural)
einen rankeren (accusative comparative includes-article indefinite masculine mixed singular)
eine rankere (accusative comparative feminine includes-article indefinite mixed singular)
ein rankeres (accusative comparative includes-article indefinite mixed neuter singular)
rankeren (accusative comparative indefinite mixed plural)
keine rankeren (accusative comparative includes-article indefinite mixed negative plural)
am ranksten (masculine predicative singular superlative)
am ranksten (feminine predicative singular superlative)
am ranksten (neuter predicative singular superlative)
am ranksten (plural predicative superlative)
rankster (masculine nominative singular strong superlative without-article)
rankste (feminine nominative singular strong superlative without-article)
rankstes (neuter nominative singular strong superlative without-article)
rankste (nominative plural strong superlative without-article)
ranksten (genitive masculine singular strong superlative without-article)
rankster (feminine genitive singular strong superlative without-article)
ranksten (genitive neuter singular strong superlative without-article)
rankster (genitive plural strong superlative without-article)
rankstem (dative masculine singular strong superlative without-article)
rankster (dative feminine singular strong superlative without-article)
rankstem (dative neuter singular strong superlative without-article)
ranksten (dative plural strong superlative without-article)
ranksten (accusative masculine singular strong superlative without-article)
rankste (accusative feminine singular strong superlative without-article)
rankstes (accusative neuter singular strong superlative without-article)
rankste (accusative plural strong superlative without-article)
der rankste (definite includes-article masculine nominative singular superlative weak)
die rankste (definite feminine includes-article nominative singular superlative weak)
das rankste (definite includes-article neuter nominative singular superlative weak)
die ranksten (definite includes-article nominative plural superlative weak)
des ranksten (definite genitive includes-article masculine singular superlative weak)
der ranksten (definite feminine genitive includes-article singular superlative weak)
des ranksten (definite genitive includes-article neuter singular superlative weak)
der ranksten (definite genitive includes-article plural superlative weak)
dem ranksten (dative definite includes-article masculine singular superlative weak)
der ranksten (dative definite feminine includes-article singular superlative weak)
dem ranksten (dative definite includes-article neuter singular superlative weak)
den ranksten (dative definite includes-article plural superlative weak)
den ranksten (accusative definite includes-article masculine singular superlative weak)
die rankste (accusative definite feminine includes-article singular superlative weak)
das rankste (accusative definite includes-article neuter singular superlative weak)
die ranksten (accusative definite includes-article plural superlative weak)
ein rankster (includes-article indefinite masculine mixed nominative singular superlative)
eine rankste (feminine includes-article indefinite mixed nominative singular superlative)
ein rankstes (includes-article indefinite mixed neuter nominative singular superlative)
ranksten (indefinite mixed nominative plural superlative)
keine ranksten (includes-article indefinite mixed negative nominative plural superlative)
eines ranksten (genitive includes-article indefinite masculine mixed singular superlative)
einer ranksten (feminine genitive includes-article indefinite mixed singular superlative)
eines ranksten (genitive includes-article indefinite mixed neuter singular superlative)
ranksten (genitive indefinite mixed plural superlative)
keiner ranksten (genitive includes-article indefinite mixed negative plural superlative)
einem ranksten (dative includes-article indefinite masculine mixed singular superlative)
einer ranksten (dative feminine includes-article indefinite mixed singular superlative)
einem ranksten (dative includes-article indefinite mixed neuter singular superlative)
ranksten (dative indefinite mixed plural superlative)
keinen ranksten (dative includes-article indefinite mixed negative plural superlative)
einen ranksten (accusative includes-article indefinite masculine mixed singular superlative)
eine rankste (accusative feminine includes-article indefinite mixed singular superlative)
ein rankstes (accusative includes-article indefinite mixed neuter singular superlative)
ranksten (accusative indefinite mixed plural superlative)
keine ranksten (accusative includes-article indefinite mixed negative plural superlative)

Borrowed from Middle Low German rank, ranc, from Old Saxon *rank, from Proto-West Germanic *rank.


rank

rank (masculine nominative singular)
ranku (feminine nominative singular)
rank (neuter nominative singular)
rankanā (accusative masculine singular)
rankā (accusative feminine singular)
rank (accusative neuter singular)
rankas (genitive masculine singular)
rankeʀā (feminine genitive singular)
rankas (genitive neuter singular)
rankumē (dative masculine singular)
rankeʀē (dative feminine singular)
rankumē (dative neuter singular)
ranku (instrumental masculine singular)
rankeʀu (feminine instrumental singular)
ranku (instrumental neuter singular)
rankē (masculine nominative plural)
rankō (feminine nominative plural)
ranku (neuter nominative plural)
rankā (accusative masculine plural)
rankā (accusative feminine plural)
ranku (accusative neuter plural)
rankeʀō (genitive masculine plural)
rankeʀō (feminine genitive plural)
rankeʀō (genitive neuter plural)
rankēm (dative masculine plural)
rankum (dative masculine plural)
rankēm (dative feminine plural)
rankum (dative feminine plural)
rankēm (dative neuter plural)
rankum (dative neuter plural)
rankēm (instrumental masculine plural)
rankum (instrumental masculine plural)
rankēm (feminine instrumental plural)
rankum (feminine instrumental plural)
rankēm (instrumental neuter plural)
rankum (instrumental neuter plural)

Old English: ranc

English: rank

Old Dutch: *ranc

Middle Dutch: ranc

Dutch: rank

Afrikaans: rank

Old Saxon: *rank

Middle Low German: rank

Low German: rank

→ German: rank

→ Vulgar Latin: *rancus (possible merging with *hring (“ring”))

desctree

Old French: reng, renc, renk, renge, renke, rang, ranc
Middle French: ranc, rang
French: rang
→ Middle English: rank
English: rank
Picard: râng (Athois)
Walloon: ran (Forrières), rang (Liégeois)
→ Middle English: renge, reng

Old Occitan: reng, renc

Occitan: reng

Old Catalan: rench

Catalan: reng