[class] n, often attrib [F classe, fr. L classis group called to military service, fleet, class; perh. akin to L calare to call--more at low] (1602) 1 a: a body of students meeting regularly to study the same subject b: the period during which such a body meets c: a course of instruction d: a body of students or alumni whose year of graduation is the same
2. a: a group sharing the same economic or social status "the working ~" b: social rank; esp: high social rank c: high quality: elegance
3: a group, set, or kind sharing common attributes: as a: a major category in biological taxonomy ranking above the order and below the phylum or division b: a collection of adjacent and discrete or continuous values of a random variable c: set 21
4: a division or rating based on grade or quality
5: the best of its kind "the ~ of the league"
[2]class vt (1705): classify