".NET" meaning in English

See .NET in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Proper name

Etymology: Usually said to be from network. Called in early press announcements Next Generation Windows Services before this name was chosen. According to Justin Grant, who was part of the team on the Microsoft campus, the name was chosen because it: * mirrored the domain suffix [.net] of (at the time) every ISP, so was intended to remind users that "web-enabling your software" was the core scenario being targetted by this work * was more approachable to business types and CIOs than geekier names like "Universal Runtime" or "COM+ 2.0" * had practical benefits like: being short, easy to spell, globalized well, could leverage already-owned domain names for every Microsoft product, etc. * actually passed legal/trademark review (surprisingly difficult!) So it was intended to mean something, but more so by connotation rather than directly abbreviating or describing something. Etymology templates: {{quote-gloss|<i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">.net</i>}} [.net] Head templates: {{en-proper noun}} .NET
  1. (computing, Microsoft) A set of Microsoft products and services – primarily the .NET Framework, which permits the development of software for a virtual machine in any programming language that is CLI-compliant (i.e., conforms with the Common Language Infrastructure). Wikipedia link: Microsoft campus Derived forms: ASP.NET Translations (.NET): دُوت نِت (english: dot net) [masculine] (Arabic), ドットネット (dottonetto) (Japanese), داتنت (dât-net) (Persian), дот не́т (dot nɛ́t) [masculine] (Russian)
{
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "<i class=\"Latn mention\" lang=\"mul\">.net</i>"
      },
      "expansion": "[.net]",
      "name": "quote-gloss"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Usually said to be from network. Called in early press announcements Next Generation Windows Services before this name was chosen. According to Justin Grant, who was part of the team on the Microsoft campus, the name was chosen because it:\n* mirrored the domain suffix [.net] of (at the time) every ISP, so was intended to remind users that \"web-enabling your software\" was the core scenario being targetted by this work\n* was more approachable to business types and CIOs than geekier names like \"Universal Runtime\" or \"COM+ 2.0\"\n* had practical benefits like: being short, easy to spell, globalized well, could leverage already-owned domain names for every Microsoft product, etc.\n* actually passed legal/trademark review (surprisingly difficult!)\nSo it was intended to mean something, but more so by connotation rather than directly abbreviating or describing something.",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": ".NET",
      "name": "en-proper noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "name",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Arabic terms with non-redundant manual transliterations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Russian terms with non-redundant manual transliterations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Arabic translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Japanese translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Persian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Russian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Computing",
          "orig": "en:Computing",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Microsoft",
          "orig": "en:Microsoft",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "derived": [
        {
          "word": "ASP.NET"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A set of Microsoft products and services – primarily the .NET Framework, which permits the development of software for a virtual machine in any programming language that is CLI-compliant (i.e., conforms with the Common Language Infrastructure)."
      ],
      "id": "en-.NET-en-name-hsPrkphp",
      "links": [
        [
          "computing",
          "computing#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "Microsoft",
          "Microsoft"
        ],
        [
          "software",
          "software"
        ],
        [
          "virtual machine",
          "virtual machine"
        ],
        [
          "programming language",
          "programming language"
        ],
        [
          "Common Language Infrastructure",
          "Common Language Infrastructure"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(computing, Microsoft) A set of Microsoft products and services – primarily the .NET Framework, which permits the development of software for a virtual machine in any programming language that is CLI-compliant (i.e., conforms with the Common Language Infrastructure)."
      ],
      "topics": [
        "computing",
        "engineering",
        "mathematics",
        "natural-sciences",
        "physical-sciences",
        "sciences"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "ar",
          "english": "dot net",
          "lang": "Arabic",
          "sense": ".NET",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "دُوت نِت"
        },
        {
          "code": "ja",
          "lang": "Japanese",
          "roman": "dottonetto",
          "sense": ".NET",
          "word": "ドットネット"
        },
        {
          "code": "fa",
          "lang": "Persian",
          "roman": "dât-net",
          "sense": ".NET",
          "word": "داتنت"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "dot nɛ́t",
          "sense": ".NET",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "дот не́т"
        }
      ],
      "wikipedia": [
        "Microsoft campus"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": ".NET"
}
{
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "ASP.NET"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "<i class=\"Latn mention\" lang=\"mul\">.net</i>"
      },
      "expansion": "[.net]",
      "name": "quote-gloss"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Usually said to be from network. Called in early press announcements Next Generation Windows Services before this name was chosen. According to Justin Grant, who was part of the team on the Microsoft campus, the name was chosen because it:\n* mirrored the domain suffix [.net] of (at the time) every ISP, so was intended to remind users that \"web-enabling your software\" was the core scenario being targetted by this work\n* was more approachable to business types and CIOs than geekier names like \"Universal Runtime\" or \"COM+ 2.0\"\n* had practical benefits like: being short, easy to spell, globalized well, could leverage already-owned domain names for every Microsoft product, etc.\n* actually passed legal/trademark review (surprisingly difficult!)\nSo it was intended to mean something, but more so by connotation rather than directly abbreviating or describing something.",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": ".NET",
      "name": "en-proper noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "name",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "Arabic terms with non-redundant manual transliterations",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English lemmas",
        "English proper nouns",
        "English terms spelled with .",
        "English uncountable nouns",
        "Entries with translation boxes",
        "Pages with 1 entry",
        "Pages with entries",
        "Russian terms with non-redundant manual transliterations",
        "Terms with Arabic translations",
        "Terms with Japanese translations",
        "Terms with Persian translations",
        "Terms with Russian translations",
        "en:Computing",
        "en:Microsoft"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A set of Microsoft products and services – primarily the .NET Framework, which permits the development of software for a virtual machine in any programming language that is CLI-compliant (i.e., conforms with the Common Language Infrastructure)."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "computing",
          "computing#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "Microsoft",
          "Microsoft"
        ],
        [
          "software",
          "software"
        ],
        [
          "virtual machine",
          "virtual machine"
        ],
        [
          "programming language",
          "programming language"
        ],
        [
          "Common Language Infrastructure",
          "Common Language Infrastructure"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(computing, Microsoft) A set of Microsoft products and services – primarily the .NET Framework, which permits the development of software for a virtual machine in any programming language that is CLI-compliant (i.e., conforms with the Common Language Infrastructure)."
      ],
      "topics": [
        "computing",
        "engineering",
        "mathematics",
        "natural-sciences",
        "physical-sciences",
        "sciences"
      ],
      "wikipedia": [
        "Microsoft campus"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "ar",
      "english": "dot net",
      "lang": "Arabic",
      "sense": ".NET",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "دُوت نِت"
    },
    {
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "roman": "dottonetto",
      "sense": ".NET",
      "word": "ドットネット"
    },
    {
      "code": "fa",
      "lang": "Persian",
      "roman": "dât-net",
      "sense": ".NET",
      "word": "داتنت"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "dot nɛ́t",
      "sense": ".NET",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "дот не́т"
    }
  ],
  "word": ".NET"
}

Download raw JSONL data for .NET meaning in English (3.1kB)

{
  "called_from": "form_descriptions/1831",
  "msg": "unrecognized sense qualifier: computing, Microsoft",
  "path": [
    ".NET"
  ],
  "section": "English",
  "subsection": "proper noun",
  "title": ".NET",
  "trace": ""
}

{
  "called_from": "form_descriptions/1831",
  "msg": "unrecognized sense qualifier: computing, Microsoft",
  "path": [
    ".NET"
  ],
  "section": "English",
  "subsection": "proper noun",
  "title": ".NET",
  "trace": ""
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-08-04 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-08-02 using wiktextract (a681f8a and 3c020d2). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.