GROSS


Meaning of GROSS in English

I. ˈgrōs sometimes -ȯ- adjective

( usually -er/-est )

Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French gros, thick, coarse, from Latin grossus; perhaps akin to Middle Irish, Welsh, Cornish & Breton bras thick, large

1.

a. archaic : immediately obvious : plain , evident

'tis gross you love my son — Shakespeare

b.

(1) : glaringly noticeable : flagrant

one gross error after another

(2) : out-and-out , complete , utter , unmitigated , rank

a gross traitor

a gross fool

gross injustice

c. : visible without the aid of a microscope : large enough to be seen with the naked eye : macroscopic , manifest

gross lesions

— compare occult

2.

a.

(1) archaic : physically large : big , bulky , massive

the piers being extremely gross — George Semple

(2) : strongly and heavily built : stocky , burly

a gross giant of a man

(3) : excessively fat or dumpy : excessively corpulent or lumpish

a great, gross girl with a fleshy face and small eyes — Margaret Long

b. : growing or spreading with excessive or abnormal luxuriance

a gross riot of vegetation

3.

a.

(1) : of, relating to, or dealing with general aspects or broad distinctions : not specific or closely detailed

acquainted him with the gross outlines of the matter

: general , generalized , overall

important to understand the gross behavior of the sexually responding animal — A.C.Kinsey

(2) archaic : lacking clarity and precision : vague , foggy

b. : consisting of an overall total exclusive of deductions

gross earnings

gross production

gross annual profit

— opposed to net

4.

a. : made up of many closely compacted particles

gross clouds of dust

or drops

a gross fog

gross vapors

: dense , thick

b. : made up of elements that are material or perceptible to the senses : earthy , carnal , animal

both the intellectual and the grosser part of human nature

c. archaic : made up of or yielding relatively large or coarse parts or particles

tarras or other gross matter — John Smeaton

5. archaic

a. : undistinguished or poor in quality : common , cheap , inferior

fish and oil and such gross commodities — Daniel Defoe

b. : not fastidious in taste : undiscriminating

their diet is extremely gross — E.W.Lane

c. : lacking delicacy of perception : slow to respond : dull , stupid , oafish

6. : lacking knowledge or culture : ignorant , unrefined , rude , cloddish , primitive , barbaric

the gross herd of the people

7.

a. : coarse in nature, manner, or expression

gross interests

gross pleasures

a gross way of behaving

b. : lacking civility or decency : low , vulgar , crude , offensive , obscene

a revoltingly gross expletive

habitually used gross language

Synonyms: see coarse , flagrant , whole

II. noun

( -es )

Etymology: Middle English, from gross, adjective

1.

a. obsolete : amount

I cannot instantly raise up the gross of full three thousand ducats — Shakespeare

b. : an overall total exclusive of deductions (as taxes, expenses) : sum total

the company's gross doubled in five years

2. archaic : main body : principal part : bulk , mass

the gross of the army — Thomas Carlyle

- by the gross

- in gross

- in the gross

III. transitive verb

( -ed/-ing/-es )

Etymology: gross (I)

: to make, earn, or bring in (an overall total) exclusive of deductions (as taxes, expenses)

a musical comedy that grossed a million dollars

IV. noun

( plural gross )

Etymology: Middle English groos, groce, from Middle French grosse, from feminine of gros thick, coarse — more at gross I

: an aggregate of 12 dozen things : an aggregate of 144 things ; specifically : a lot made up of 12 dozen usually relatively small and substantially identical commercial objects

ordered a gross of pencils

3 gross of can openers

V. adjective

slang : inspiring disgust or distaste

that sandwich looks gross

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.