NET

I. noun Etymology: Middle English ~t, from Old English; akin to Old High German nezzi ~ Date: before 12th century 1. an open-meshed fabric twisted, knotted, or woven together at regular intervals, something made of ~: as, a device for catching fish, birds, or insects, a fabric barricade which divides a court in half (as in tennis or volleyball) and over which a ball or shuttlecock must be hit to be in play, the fabric that encloses the sides and back of the goal in various games (as soccer or hockey), an entrapping device or situation , something resembling a ~ in reticulation (as of lines, fibers, or figures), 4. a group of communications stations operating under unified control, ~work 4, Inter~ , ~less adjective ~like adjective ~ty adjective II. transitive verb (~ted; ~ting) Date: 1593 to cover or enclose with or as if with a ~, to catch in or as if in a ~, to cover with or as if with a ~work, 4. to hit (a ball) into the ~ for the loss of a point in a racket game, to hit (a ball or puck) into the goal for a score (as in hockey or soccer), ~ter noun III. adjective see: neat Date: 15th century free from all charges or deductions: as, remaining after the deduction of all charges, outlay, or loss , excluding all tare , excluding all nonessential considerations ; basic , final , IV. transitive verb (~ted; ~ting) Date: 1758 1. to receive by way of profit ; clear , to produce by way of profit ; yield , to get possession of ; gain , V. noun Date: circa 1904 a ~ amount, profit, weight, or price, the score of a golfer in a handicap match after deducting his or her handicap from the gross score, essence , gist