<p><strong>Noun:</strong></p><ul><li>a degree or step in a scale, as of rank, advancement, quality, value, or intensity (e.g., the best grade of paper)</li><li>a class of persons or things of the same relative rank, quality, etc.</li><li>a step or stage in a course or process</li><li>a single division of a school classified according to the age or progress of the pupils (e.g., in the U.S., public schools are commonly divided into twelve grades below college)</li><li>the pupils in such a division</li><li>(the) grades: elementary school (e.g., He first began teaching in the grades)</li><li>a letter, number, or other symbol indicating the relative quality of a student’s work in a course, examination, or special assignment; mark</li><li>a classification or standard of food based on quality, size, etc. (e.g., grade A milk)</li><li>inclination with the horizontal of a road, railroad, etc., usually expressed by stating the vertical rise or fall as a percentage of the horizontal distance; slope</li><li>the level at which the ground intersects the foundation of a building (Building Trades)</li><li>an animal resulting from a cross between a parent of ordinary stock and one of a pure breed</li><li>grad (Mathematics)</li></ul><p><strong>Verb (used with object):</strong></p><ul><li>to arrange in a series of grades; classify; sort (e.g., a machine that grades two thousand eggs per hour)</li><li>to determine the grade of</li><li>to assign a grade to (a student’s work); mark (e.g., I graded forty tests last night)</li><li>to cause to pass by degrees, as from one color or shade to another</li><li>to reduce to a level or to practicable degrees of inclination (e.g., to grade a road)</li><li>to cross (an ordinary or low-grade animal) with an animal of a pure or superior breed</li></ul><p><strong>Verb (used without object):</strong></p><ul><li>to incline; slant or slope (e.g., The road grades steeply for a mile)</li><li>to be of a particular grade or quality</li><li>to pass by degrees from one color or shade to another; blend (e.g., See how the various colors grade into one another)</li></ul><p><strong>Verb Phrase:</strong></p><ul><li>to improve (a herd, flock, etc.) by breeding with purebreds</li></ul>