▪ I. rank, n.1
(ræŋk)
Also 6 Sc. raink, 6–7 ranke, 6–8 ranck, (6–7 -e), 7 ranque.
[a. obs. F. ranc (mod. rang), var. renc, usually supposed to be a. OHG. hrinc, hring ring.]
1. a. A row, line, or series of things.
In common use c 1580–1610, esp. with ref. to teeth and trees; now rare in general sense, but used spec. of cabs or carriages (sense 1 c), and techn. of organ-pipes and in Teleph.
| 1570 Levins Manip. 24/21 A rank of things, turba, caterua. 1576 Fleming Panopl. Epist. 249 Such a rancke and rowe of litigious causes..hange one vppon another, as linckes in a long chaine. 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. xi. 13 In either jaw Three ranckes of yron teeth enraunged were. 1600 Shakes. A.Y.L. iv. iii. 80 The ranke of Oziers by the murmuring streame. 1693 Evelyn De la Quint. Compl. Gard. II. 149 A Rank of Baskets..one at the tail of the other, beginning the Rank or Row where the Bed is to end. 1811 Busby Dict. Mus. s.v. Stop, Furniture Stop..comprising two or more ranks of pipes. 1881 Edwards Organs xxi. 153 The most useful mixture for a small organ is one of three ranks. 1888 Jacobi Printers' Vocab. s.v., Composing frames are generally arranged in rows or ranks. 1924 Brit. Stand. List Terms Telegraphs & Telephones 13 Rank of switches,..the switches which provide for any one stage of call selection. 1929 P.O. Engin. Dept. Techn. Instr. XXV. ii. 6 The number of ranks of selectors is one less than the required number of digits to call a number on the exchange. 1969 S. F. Smith Telephony & Telegraphy A v. 119 If more than 1000 numbers are required, another rank of group selectors can be used. |
† b. on a rank: On end, continuously.
Obs.| 1574 Hellowes Gueuara's Fam. Ep. (1577) 360 Hee went to fast..xl. dayes and xl. nights on a rancke. |
c. A row of public vehicles waiting to be hired, or the place where these stand; a taxi-rank.
| c 1843 J. R. Planché Extravaganzas (1879) II. 240 My Minstrel Boy for a cab is gone, In the ranks no doubt he'll find one. 1851 Mayhew Lond. Lab. III. 353 [The] small masters..are amongst the most respectable men of the ranks. 1903 Daily Chron. 29 Sept. 3/1 These proposals include the use of such large ranks as that in Berkeley-square as feeders for smaller ones in the vicinity. 1922 Daily Mail Year Bk. 1923 74/2 One London firm having an air-garage with machines waiting for hire always on its ‘rank’. 1930 D. L. Sayers Strong Poison i. 21 The taxi-driver Burke, who was standing on the rank in Guilford Street, was approached by Philip Boyes. 1962 S. Beckett in Evergreen Rev. Jan.–Feb. 16, I learnt there were still some cabmen who spent their day snug and warm inside their cabs on the rank. 1974 ‘J. Ross’ Burning of Billy Toober ix. 88 She returned..by taxi... The driver..picked her up at the rank in the town square. 1978 Taxi 16 Feb. 2/2 On Alf's return to the forecourt the dozen cabmen who had gathered decided that a protest boycott was necessary and they began picketing the rank. |
2. a. A row or line of persons. Now
rare (
cf. 3).
| 1571 Golding Calvin on Ps. xlii. 5 David ment ranks: bycause they went..in orderly rowes when they came to the Tabernacle. 1597 Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. lxxix. §14 A miserable ranke of poore, lame and impotent persons. 1697 Dryden æneid ii. 1044 A ranck of wretched youths, with pinion'd Hands. 1728 Pope Dunciad iv. 107 Courtiers and Patriots in two ranks divide, Thro' both he pass'd, and bow'd from side to side. 1870 B. Taylor 2nd Pt. Faust iii. 440 Chorus..dancing nimbly..in interlinking ranks. |
† b. Phr.
in or of a rank, in a line or file.
on a rank, abreast.
Obs.| 1570 Satir. Poems Reform. xxii. 6 A gyde to blind men in a rank. 1581 G. Pettie Guazzo's Civ. Conv. iii. (1586) 157 b, All the women in the towne runne thether of a ranke, as it wer in procession. 1588 Parke tr. Mendoza's Hist. China 182 The hie wayes are verie brode, that twentie men may ride together on a ranke and one not hinder an other. |
† c. Movement in line or file.
Obs. rare.
| 1600 Shakes. A.Y.L. iii. ii. 103 It is the right Butter⁓womens ranke to Market. |
3. Mil. A number of soldiers drawn up in line abreast. Hence in
pl. freq. = forces, battalion, army (also in phrases as
ranks of death,
ranks of war).
to close ranks: see
close v. 10 b. Also
fig.| 1574 H. G. tr. Cataneo's Briefe Tables F iij, Let 44 ranckes of unarmed Pikes..be bestowed behind these armed ranckes. 1595 Shakes. John iv. ii. 244 My State is braued,..with rankes of forraigne powres. 1668 Culpepper & Cole Barthol. Anat. iv. xx. 356 They resemble a rank of Souldiers in battle array. 1732 T. Lediard Sethos II. ix. 320 The march was to be by ten in a rank. 1738 Gray Propertius iii. 33 To paint the Hero's Toil, the Ranks of War. 1781 Cowper Table T. 768 'Twould thin the ranks of the poetic tribe. 1813 Scott Rokeby i. xii, On Marston heath Met, front to front, the ranks of death. 1796–7, 1873 [see close v. 10 b]. 1855 Prescott Philip II, ii. (1857) 274 He at once enrolled himself in the ranks of the opposition. 1874 Green Short Hist. vii. §6. 399 Scholars like Hooker, gentlemen like George Herbert, could now be found in the ranks of the priesthood. 1875 Jowett Plato (ed. 2) I. 82 When the ranks are broken and you have to fight singly. 1941 ‘G. Orwell’ Lion & Unicorn i. iii. 35 England..is a family... It has its private language and its common memories, and at the approach of an enemy it closes its ranks. 1948 W. Churchill Gathering Storm i. xxi. 382 The tide of events brought with it a closing of the ranks between England and France, and also at home. 1974 G. Hubbard Quaker by Convincement ii. i. 68 Some Friends occasionally suggest that a creed might help to clarify our thoughts... At this suggestion the majority close their ranks, and hold firm to their beliefs, which are not to be contained in the strait-jacket of a creed. 1977 Oxford Mission Quarterly Paper Jan.–Mar. 16 When surrounded by astronomical numbers of non⁓Christians, Christians tend to show their solidarity by closing their ranks. |
| transf. 1577 Breton Flourish upon Fancie ii. (Grosart) I. 10/1 A Garde of Geese and Ganders, in one rancke. 1625 Sir J. Glanville Voy. to Cadiz (Camden) 15 To enjoyne our ffleete to advance & fight att Sea, much after the maner of an Armie at land, assigneing every shipp to a perticular division, ranke, file, and station. |
b. pl. The body of private soldiers; the rank and file (see 5 b). Also
transf. to rise from the ranks, of a private or non-commissioned officer: to receive a commission, to become a commissioned officer;
freq. transf., to rise from a lowly social, etc., position.
Cf. other a. 5
f.| 1809 Wellington Let. to Beresford 25 June in Gurw. Desp. (1837) IV. 464 The irregularity of Colonel Blunt having three servants from the ranks. 1845 Punch VIII. 127 I've flattered Peel; he smiles back thanks... But still he keeps me in ‘the ranks’. 1853 Ruskin Let. 6 Nov. in M. Lutyens Millais & Ruskins (1967) 106 Mr. Beveridge [has]..been effecting singular cures..and rose from the ranks— as Jephson did. 1858 Trollope Dr. Thorne I. iii. 67 A native of Barchester, having risen from the world's ranks. 1897 Daily News 16 June 7/7 Native ranks, except three, doing well. 1936 B. Kellermann Tunnel ii. iii. 84 There was no doubt about the fact that Woolf had risen from the ranks. 1958 J. Wain Contenders ii. 27 Baxter, a harmless bore of about thirty-five, had risen from the ranks, so to speak. 1977 Times 2 June 15/7 St. George..is acclaimed as a soldier who rose from the ranks to become a tribune. |
c. Chess. One of the lines of squares stretching across the board from side to side. Also
in rank, on one of these lines (
cf. 4).
| 1597 G. B. Ludus Scacchiæ D iij b, Moouing a Pawne from left hand side, which on the fourth ranke stood. 1672 Barbier Saul's Chesse play ix, [The King's move is] to the next House or place, in File or rancke, of any side. 1894 J. Mason Princ. Chess 4 The rank upon which the player's Pieces are ranged is his first rank. |
d. fig. of things.
| 1593 Shakes. Lucr. 1439 Simois..Whose waves to imitate the battle sought.. and their ranks began To break upon the galled shore. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 514 At once the Ranks of swelling Streams divide. 1842 Tennyson Amphion 33 The linden broke her ranks and rent The woodbine wreaths that bind her. |
4. Without article: Line, order, array. In
phr. as
in rank (
into rank) or
out of rank,
to keep rank or
break rank.
| 1572 Huloet s.v., Goe in rancke, or raye, incede ordine. To come into rancke, or raye, incurrere in ordinem. 1598 Barret Theor. Warres ii. i. 25 He must be carefull that his souldiers breake not out of ranke. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts (1658) 249 The Horse-men had broken rank and were asunder. 1611 Bible 1 Chron. xii. 33 Fifty thousand, which could keep rank. 1647 N. Bacon Disc. Govt. Eng. i. xv. (1739) 29 The Legate..soon reduced him into rank. 1711 Fingall MSS. in 10th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. V. 167 The entrance is too narrow, as not capable of above four men in ranck. 1850 Tennyson In Mem. xiv, [To] see thy passengers in rank Come stepping lightly down the plank. 1880 Browning Echetlos ii, No man but..kept rank and fought away In his tribe and file. |
| transf. 1623 Massinger Bondman iv. iv, A part of your honour's ruff stands out of rank. |
5. rank and file:
a. (see
quot. 1802 and
file n.2 7). Chiefly
pl. or without article in
phr. in rank and file (
cf. 4). Also
transf.| 1598 Barret Theor. Warres iii. i. 34 To learne to keepe his ranke and file orderly. 1600 Holland Livy xxxv. v. 891 This tempest and storme of Cavallerie..brake their ranks and files cleane. 1632 Massinger Maid of Hon. iv. i, See the soldiers set In rank and file. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. ii. 375 Extend thy loose Battalions..Opening thy Ranks and Files on either Side. 1781 Cowper Truth 422 His books well trimmed..Like regimental coxcombs rank and file. 1802 James Milit. Dict., Ranks and files, are the horizontal and vertical lines of soldiers when drawn up for service. a 1822 A. Boswell Skeldon Haughs, The Crawfords march'd in rank and file. |
| transf. 1784 Burns 1st Ep. to Davie xi, The words come skelpan, rank and file. |
b. collect. (The) common soldiers; (the) privates and corporals. Now
freq. hyphened.
Cf. rank-and-file a.
| 1796 Campaigns 1793–4 I. i. vi. 51 It may not be amiss..to state..that rank and file means, in Gazette returns, the corporals and private soldiers. 1814 Wellington 15 May in Gurw. Disp. XII. 13 A corps consisting of about 12,000 rank and file of British infantry. 1894 Wolseley Life Marlborough II. lii. 84 Unless the Rank and File are interested in their work, there will be no enthusiasm. |
| transf. 1860 Mill Repr. Govt. (1865) 64/2 One of the mere rank and file of a party. 1888 Bryce Amer. Commw. I. xv. 212 For other committees there remains only the rank and file of the House. 1927 New Republic 12 Oct. 205/2 The rank and file have grown tired of the persistent effort of the Communists to subvert trade-union discipline. 1939 H. Nicolson Diary 14 Mar. (1966) 392 The ignorance of the Tory rank-and-file in regard to foreign policy is as terrifying as the prospect of a gardener suddenly driving a Rolls Royce. 1972 History Workshop Pamphlet No. 6 37 In the depression of the later 1870s the demand from the rank-and-file for a policy of restriction became very strong. 1976 E. Maclaren Nature of Belief ix. 91 Professional theologians might refine beyond recognition the bald credal outlines demanded of the rank-and-file. 1976 tr. Wang Chin-fu et al. in Yenan Seeds & other Stories 113 You'd better go to the rank-and-file to find out what they think. |
† 6. A class, set, kind (of persons or things).
Obs.| 1585 T. Washington tr. Nicholay's Voy. i. xxi, The most part of them were put to the ranke of criminels forsworn. 1610 Willet Hexapla, Daniel 294 The diuers opinions..may be sorted into three ranks. 1660 Stanley Hist. Philos. ix. III. 47 A Pythagorean of the Acousmatick ranck. 1725 Watts Logic ii. iii. (1736) 221 The Authority of Men is the Spring of another Rank of Prejudices. |
7. One of several rows or lines of things placed at different levels. ?
Obs.| 1577 B. Googe Heresbach's Husb. (1586) 179 b, It is enough to haue three rankes of them, one aboue the other. 1667 Milton P.L. iv. 140 As the ranks ascend Shade above shade, a woodie Theatre. 1693 Evelyn De la Quint. Compl. Gard. I. 178 One single rank or story of roots is enough. 1734 tr. Rollin's Anc. Hist. V. 13 Ranks of oars in the modern galleys. |
8. a. A number of persons forming a distinct class in the social scale, or in any organized body; a grade of station or dignity, an order; hence, (one's) social position or standing. Also in phrases
of high rank (etc.)
rank.
| 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. vi. 347 He was bot of the mid ranck of nobles. 1611 Tourneur Ath. Trag. i. i, To put me in the habite of my ranque. 1651 Hobbes Leviath. ii. xxx. 180 The aydes they give to men of inferiour rank. 1732 Berkeley Alciphr. iii. §17 Reasonable and well-educated men of all ranks. 1781 Gibbon Decl. & F. xxxv. (1869) II. 306 The boldest chieftains aspired to the rank of kings. 1791 Mrs. Radcliffe Rom. Forest vi, An air of dignity which declared him to be of superior rank. 1853 Lytton My Novel ii. v, His descendants..took rank among the first commoners in England. 1873 Max Müller Sc. Relig. 347 Few men commanded greater respect in all ranks of Greek society. |
b. High station in society, etc.; social distinction. Also in professional, military, and other walks of life.
concr. persons of high position. Phr.
to pull rank: see
pull v. 20 g.
| 1742 Shenstone Schoolmistress 140 Some with rank she grac'd (The source of children's and of courtier's pride). 1776 Trial of Nundocomar 91/1, I heard..several persons of rank had been to pay salams. 1830 D'Israeli Chas. I, III. v. 75 The pride of rank was attended by one of its peculiar infirmities. 1883 Freeman Impress. U.S. 172 The rank and fashion of the older country does not shut itself up in a town. 1964 M. Banton Policeman in Community iv. 116 One Carolina City officer had served in a United States army unit which was stationed alongside the Black Watch..and he commented: ‘Why, a man with one stripe in that outfit had more rank than a master-sergeant in ours.’ 1968 J. Lock Lady Policeman xv. 129 Most days we wouldn't see any rank. 1972 J. R. T. Pollard in G. W. Knight Jackson Knight 10 One who stood above rank,..and took just as much interest in the problems and activities of the..College domestic staff as he did in those of the students and his fellow academics. 1977 Transatlantic Rev. lx. 21 Why doesn't he wear his rank on his coat, he had once asked his mother. |
9. a. A class (of persons, animals, or things) in a scale of comparison; hence, relative position or status, place.
spec. in
Statistics, position in a numerically ordered series; the number specifying the position.
Cf. rank v.
1 3 b.
| 1605 Shakes. Macb. iii. i. 103 If you haue a station in the file, Not i' th' worst ranke of Manhood, say't. 1639 T. Brugis tr. Camus' Mor. Relat. 144 A Castle bearing such ranke as few are before it, but divers behind it in magnificence. a 1674 Clarendon Hist. Reb. xi. §151 The Convertine, a Ship of the second Rank, that carried seventy Guns. 1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) IV. 64 If we look through the different ranks of animals, from the largest to the smallest. Ibid. V. 107 The first rank in the description of birds, has been given to the eagle. 1851 Ruskin Stones Ven. I. Pref. (1874) 8 To place in its true rank the general Gothic of the 13th century, in Italy. 1874 Green Short Hist. iii. §4. 128 Oxford stood in the first rank among English towns. 1883 F. Galton Inquiries into Human Faculty 53 We are often called upon to define the position of an individual in his own series... In reckoning this, a confusion ought to be avoided between ‘graduation’ and ‘rank’, though it leads to no sensible error in practice. Ibid. 54 All..ranks stand half a degree short of the graduation bearing the same number. Ibid., His rank of No. 5 will correspond to the graduation 4°.5. 1904 Amer. Jrnl. Psychol. XV. 81 Rank has..the useful property of allowing any two series to be easily and fairly combined into a third composite one. 1907 Drapers' Company Res. Mem. (Biometric Ser.) IV. 10, I term rank the actual position in order of an individual with regard to any variate in a given series obtained by measurement or observation. If v1 be the ‘rank’ of an individual for a given character this signifies that in the observed population there are v1 - ½ individuals with character greater than x. 1936 Ann. Math. Statistics VII. 32 Continuous variates expressing these qualities are likely not to be normally distributed... We may therefore resort to the ranks, ignoring any exact values that have been assigned. 1943 M. G. Kendall Adv. Theory Statistics xvi. 390 The ranks are ordinal numbers and cannot without justification be operated on by the laws of cardinal arithmetic. 1976 T. D. V. Swinscow Statistics at Square One x. 60 The ranks for the two samples are..added separately and the smaller total is used. Ibid. xii. 74 Boys K, L, and M are tied at rank 12. |
b. Linguistics. The position of a unit in a grammatical or phonological hierarchy.
| 1961 Word XVII. 251 The units of grammar form a hierarchy... The relation among the units, then, is that..each ‘consists of’ one, or of more than one, of the unit next below... The scale on which the units are in fact ranged..may be called ‘rank’. 1964 M. A. K. Halliday et al. Linguistic Sci. 27 The term used to name the hierarchical relation among the units is rank; they can be arranged on a scale, and this is known as the ‘rank scale’. 1965 J. C. Catford Linguistic Theory of Translation i. 6 The units of grammar or of phonology operate in hierarchies—‘larger’ or more inclusive units being made up of ‘smaller’ or less inclusive units. They form a scale of units at different ranks... The sentence is a unit of higher rank than the clause. Ibid. 9 The concept of rank..is an important one both in theoretical linguistics and..translation-theory. 1971 R. A. Hudson Eng. Complex Sentences ii. 70 What a grammar will contain..is not a number of different system-networks, each for a different ‘rank’ (clause, phrase, etc.) or a different environment (subject, main verb, etc.), but a single network which includes all the grammatical systems needed for the language. 1977 Language LIII. 192 Although admitting that a sentence could be regarded as a special type of clause, she in fact treats them as distinct ranks. |
10. Math. Used variously, at the discretion of the author, to denote some integer that characterizes the entity being discussed.
| 1835 Rep. Brit. Assoc. Adv. Sci. 1834 528 i in the denominator..names, according to the author's nomenclature, the ‘order’ of the logarithm, and ì, in the numerator, its ‘rank’ in that order. 1913 C. E. Cullis Matrices & Determinoids ix. 265 The rank of the matrix A is the greatest order which a non-vanishing derived determinant can have. 1914 H. Hilton Homogeneous Linear Substitutions ii. 50 Suppose that..the determinant itself and all the 1st, 2nd,.., (m - r - 1)-th minors vanish, but that not all the (m - r)-th minors vanish. Then the determinant is said to be of rank r. If the determinant does not vanish, it is of rank m; if the determinant vanishes but not every first minor vanishes, the determinant is of rank m - 1‘, and so on. 1941 [see nullity 6]. 1953 N. Jacobson Lect. Abstr. Algebra II. i. 22 Any two maximal linearly independent subsets of a set S have the same cardinal number. We call this number the rank of the set S. 1965 J. J. Rotman Theory of Groups xi. 241 If F is a free group, the rank of F, r(F), is the number of elements in a free set of generators. 1972 R. J. Wilson Introd. Graph Theory viii. 121 The rank ρ(A) of a subset A of E is defined as the number of elements in the largest partial transversal of {scrS} contained in A. 1979 Proc. London Math. Soc. XXXVIII. 532 Let G be a reduced torsion-free abelian group of finite rank. |
11. Petrol. The degree of metamorphic maturity or hardness,
esp. of coal.
| 1914 Bull. U.S. Bureau of Mines No. 38. 4 The higher rank (‘grade’) of coal differs from the respective lower rank of the same genetic type by the effects of the greater metamorphism and devolatilization to which the higher rank of coal has been subjected. 1928 Jrnl. Chem. Soc. 2971 What we have termed the ‘degree of coalification’ of a coal is sometimes..termed its ‘rank’, a coal of lowest rank being one in which the processes of coalification..have had least result. 1948 Mem. Geol. Soc. Amer. No. 30. 55 Metamorphic rank and grade are synonymous terms denoting the stage of metamorphism reached. 1964 A. Nelson Dict. Mining 360 Lignite is a low-rank coal whilst anthracite is a high-rank coal. Ibid. 89 Coal rank indicates the stage of coalification which any particular coal deposit has reached between peat at one end of the scale and anthracite at the other. Ibid. 218 Hitt..came to the conclusion that in a vertical succession at any point in the coalfield the rank of the coals increased with the depth. 1976 Nature 1 July 48/1 Coals of various ranks have been treated in electrical arcs. 1979 Sci. Amer. Jan. 29/3 When adjustments are made for the inferior heating value of the lower ranks, the recoverable tonnage comes to about 600 billion tons of hard-coal equivalent, enough for more than 200 years' consumption at current rates. |
12. attrib. and
Comb., as (sense 1)
rank-wise adv.; (sense 3)
rank-closing,
rank-fellow;
rank-breaking,
rank-worshipping adjs.; (sense 8)
rank badge,
rank-class,
rank-distinction,
rank-holder,
rank-mark,
rank tab; (sense 9 b)
rank-scale,
rank-unit;
rank-based,
rank-bound adjs.;
rank correlation Statistics, the correlation between two ways of assigning ranks to the members of a set;
rank difference Statistics, the difference between two ranks assigned to the same thing;
freq. attrib.;
† rank-toothed a., having a row of teeth;
† rank-work, work set in straight lines. Also
rank order.
| 1961 Men Only June 37/2 His eyes flicked contemptuously to the *rank badges on his right sleeve. 1975 T. Allbeury Special Collection v. 32 Wehrmacht men..with their insignia and rank badges torn off. |
| 1966 G. N. Leech Eng. in Advertising ii. 11 A *rank-based description avoids these confusions, because of the insistence that each sentence should be fully described at all ranks. |
| 1965 J. C. Catford Linguistic Theory of Translation ii. 25 The cruder attempts at Machine Translation are *rank-bound in this sense..; that is, they set up word-to-word or morpheme-to-morpheme equivalences, but not equivalences between high-rank units such as the group, clause or sentence. 1968 Meta XIII. 7 Replacement ..may be rank-bound (as when only word-to-word equivalences are sought) or unbounded (as when equivalences occur between higher rank units such as sentences). |
| 1887 R. Brown Trilog. Life to Come 76 *Rank-breaking Achilles. |
| 1930 C. G. Seligman Races of Africa ix. 221 The Akamba have age-grades, and within them *rank-classes. |
| 1966 New Society 12 May 5/3 *Rank-closing had generally made the seamen as solid as a filled-in ditch... But there was more to the solidarity than just the rank-closing. |
| 1907 Drapers' Company Res. Mem. (Biometric Ser.) IV. 25 No two *rank correlations are in the least reliable or comparable unless we assume that the frequency distributions are of the same general character..provided by the hypothesis of normal distribution. Ibid. 3 Dr. Spearman has suggested that rank in a series should be the character correlated, but he has not taken this rank correlation as merely the stepping stone..to reach the true correlation. 1943 M. G. Kendall Adv. Theory of Statistics xvi. 391 A second coefficient of rank correlation which has certain advantages may be obtained as follows. Ibid. 408 Up to this point we have considered the problem of rank correlation without reference to any variate system which might underlie the rankings. 1977 S. A. Book Statistics xi. 427 The technique, called the Spearman test of ‘rank correlation’, requires us to rank each set of data and then compute the correlation coefficient of the ranks. |
| 1904 Amer. Jrnl. Psychol. XV. 86 (heading) Method of *rank differences. 1907 Drapers' Company Res. Mem. (Biometric Ser.) IV. 39 Mean square of rank differences will be more accurate than mean positive rank difference. 1972 Kagan & Havemann Psychol. xiii. 485 In some cases it is convenient to use the rank-difference method, which produces a different coefficient of correlation called ρ. |
| 1895 tr. Ratzel's Hist. Mankind i. 54 When the two halves of the race..show no recognition of *rank-distinctions. |
| 1591 Garrard's Art Warre 84 Keeping his *ranck-fellowes justlie on both sides. |
| 1951 S. F. Nadel Found. Social Anthropol. i. 18 As a *rank-holder..features of social life on lower levels may be closed to you. |
| 1928 C. F. S. Gamble Story N. Sea Air Station iv. 76 They were entitled to wear the ‘curl’ on their gold lace *rank-marks. |
| 1964 *Rank scale [see sense 9 b above]. 1970 G. C. Lepschy Survey of Structural Linguistics vii. 124 Along the rank scale five grammatical units (sentence, clause, phrase, word, morpheme) and four phonological units (tone group, foot, syllable, phoneme) are used in English. |
| 1974 ‘G. Black’ Golden Cockatrice xii. 212 Janey, in her neat uniform without *rank tabs. |
| 1578 Lyte Dodoens iii. xlvi. 381 Each leafe is *ranke toothed or snipt round about. |
| 1968 *Rank unit [see rank-bound above]. |
| 1677 Cary Chronology ii. i. i. xx. 154 Several were in posture of time standing abreast, or *rank-wise. |
| 1703 Moxon Mech. Exerc. 114 Any Straight or *Rank-work [ed. 1678 Range-work]. |
| 1869 Sat. Rev. 25 Sept. 421/2 The *rank-worshipping mammas of the period. |
▪ II. † rank, n.2 Obs. rare—1.
[? cf. G. rank quinsy, garget.] A disease of birds.
| 1708 Brit. Apollo No. 97. 2/1 Many [birds] dye of the Pip, the Rank, &c. |
▪ III. rank, a., (n.3) and adv. (
ræŋk)
Forms: 1–3
ranc, (3
rannc,
rang), 3–5
ronke, 4–6
ronk, (5
rong), 4–7
ranke, (4
raunke, 7
rawnke), 6–7
rancke, (7
wrancke), 6–8
ranck, 4–
rank.
[OE. ranc, = (M)LG. rank long and thin, tall and slender (hence prob. Da. rank erect, upright, Sw. rank slender), ON. rakkr slender, bold. The ultimate
etym. is uncertain, but the stem may be an ablaut-var. of
OS. rink,
OE. rinc man (? full-grown man), warrior. The root-idea appears to be that of growing or shooting up, taken in its fullest sense in
Eng., but in
LG. (and
ON.) restricted to height or length without corresponding breadth. The development of the word in
Eng. is, however, far from clear, as the
OE. uses are not quite the primitive ones. In
ME. also it chiefly occurs in alliterative verse,
app. more for convenience than to express definite meanings. In the later language the chief difficulty is to decide which of the more original senses are represented in the transferred uses.]
A. adj. I. † 1. Proud, high-minded, haughty; froward, rebellious.
Obs. In
OE. also proud or showy in dress: see Bosw.-Toller.
| c 1000 ælfric Deut. xxi. 18 ᵹif æniᵹ man hæbbe modiᵹne sunu and rancne [L. protervum]. c 1200 Ormin 9622 Heh follc & rannc onn eorþe. c 1300 Havelok 2561 Yif þat ani were so rang [rime þank] That he þanne ne come anon..he sholde maken him þral. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 455 Þat was þe rauen so ronk þat rebel was euer. c 1440 York Myst. xxvi. 33 Þer is a ranke swayne Whos rule is noȝt right. c 1560 A. Scott Poems (S.T.S.) i. 188 This ȝeir..sall aryse Rowtis of þe rankest þat in Europ ringis. |
2. a. Stout and strong.
Obs. exc. dial. (in later use chiefly in
rank wing;
cf. 3).
| c 1122 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 1006 Þær mihton [hi] ᵹeseon..rancne here & unearhne. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 13,805 Was þer non helm wiþ stel so rank Þat his swerd þorow-out ne sank. c 1400 Destr. Troy 4701 Þere arof all the rowte with þere Ranke shippes. Ibid. 4709 A tried castell..[with] Ranke men with in. c 1470 Gol. & Gaw. 691 Ryngis of rank steill rattillit and rent. 1536 Bellenden Cron. Scot. v. vi. (1821) I. 177 Certane wycht and rank men tuke him be the middil. 1656 Earl of Monmouth tr. Boccalini's Advts. fr. Parnass. ii. lxxvi. (1674) 228 That Pidgeon, which..hath the rankest wing. 1710 Last Distemper of Tom Whigg ii. 38 Ravens, cutting the Air at every Stroke of their rank Wing. 1824 R. Gilchrist Local Songs (ed. 2) 5 Archy lang was hale an' rank, the King o' laddies braw. |
b. Firm, strong.
rare—0.
| 1848 Webster, Rank, strong, clinching. Take rank hold. |
3. a. Having great speed or force; swift; impetuous; violent. Also
const. of.
| a 1225 Ancr. R. 268 His strencðes & his stronge [T. ronke] turnes. c 1275 Serving Christ 71 in O.E. Misc. 92 Þe ronke racches þat ruskit þe ron. a 1300 E.E. Psalter lxxvii. 44 [He] turned in blode þar stremes ranke. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. A. 1166 Of raas þaȝ I were rasch & ronk, Ȝet rapely þerinne I was restayed. 1560 Rolland Crt. Venus iv. 700 The rank riding, and the greit turnament. 1565 Jewel Repl. Harding (1611) 340 M. Harding findeth him so farre, and so ranke of his side, that he is faine to checke him of too much riot, and to call him back. 1635 Quarles Embl. v. ix. 278 The Hawlk..makes a rank Bate from her forsaken Block. 1769 R. Cumberland Brothers i. i, It blows a rank storm. a 1803 May Collin iv. in Child Ballads IV. 442/1 They came to a rank river, Was raging like the sea. |
† b. rank rider, a rapid, headlong, or reckless rider; a moss-trooper, highwayman. (Freq. in 17th c.) So
rank-runner.
Obs.| 1590 R. Harvey Pl. Perc. (1860) 11 When a Rancke rider hath put his horse to a hedge and lay in the ditch for his labor. 1603 Florio Montaigne ii. xxii. (1632) 382 Sure he was a rancke-runner: for where any river hindred his way, he swam it over. 1641 Hinde J. Bruen xi. 38 A good rule for our horse-racers, rank riders, and hot-spurre hunters..to measure their actions by. a 1700 B. E. Dict. Cant. Crew, Rank-rider, a High-way-man, also a Jockey. |
| fig. 1603 Dekker Wonderf. Yeare A iv, Those ranck-riders of Art that haue spur-gald your lustie wingd Pegasus. |
II. Full, large or gross in size, quantity, etc.
† 4. Full-grown: mature.
Obs. rare.
| c 1000 ælfric Saints' Lives xxxv. 52 He funde..fif mædena..wlitiᵹe and rance. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 869 In Sodamas..non semloker burdes, Hit arn ronk, hit arn rype & redy to manne. 1536 Bellenden Cron. Scot. (1821) I. lvii, Al rank madinnis and wiffis, gif thay war nocht with child, yeid als weill to battall as the men. |
5. Vigorous or luxuriant in growth. In later use: Growing too luxuriantly; large and coarse. Hence of growth, etc., and
freq. as complement with
grow or similar verbs.
In
rank weed also with implication of sense 15.
| c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 2105, .vii. eares wexen fette of coren, On an busk ranc and wel tidi. 13.. Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 513 Blossumez bolne to blowe, Bi rawez rych & ronk. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xiv. iii. (1495) 470 Grasse and herbes that growe in valeyes..ben generall more ranke and fatte. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 54 b, Our vyne waxeth ranke & must nedes be cutte. 1544 T. Phaer Bk. Childr. (1553) T iij, Take a good handful of ranke & lusty rew. 1605 Shakes. Lear iv. iv. 3 Crown'd with ranke Fenitar, and furrow weeds. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. ii. 340 Moist Earth produces Corn and Grass, but both Too rank and too luxuriant in their Growth. 1777 Robertson Hist. Amer. iv. Wks. 1813 I. 257 The woods are choked with its rank luxuriance. 1832 R. & J. Lander Exped. Niger II. xi. 148 We found the road to be overgrown with rank grass and luxuriant vegetation. 1850 R. G. Cumming Hunter's Life S. Afr. (ed. 2) I. 195 The male lion is adorned with a long, rank, shaggy mane. 1892 Speaker 3 Sept. 290/1 This year the roses grew a little rank, and with an over-abundance of leaves. |
| fig. 1606 Shakes. Tr. & Cr. i. iii. 318 The seeded Pride That hath to this maturity blowne vp In ranke Achilles. |
† 6. a. Excessively great or large;
esp. swollen, puffed up, grossly fat, too highly fed.
Obs.| c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 9720 He wax al blak, & bolned rank, & deyde. c 1400 Destr. Troy 1991 The flode..Rose vpon rockes as any ranke hylles. 1530 Palsgr. 322/1 Rammysshe, yll savoured as a man or beest that is to rancke. 1568 Jacob & Esau ii. iv, Is that meate for you? nay, it would make you to ranke. Nay, soft brother mine, I must kepe you more lanke. 1612 Drayton Poly-olb. vii. 238 Teame lastly thither com'n with water is so ranke. |
| transf. 1597 Shakes. 2 Hen. IV, iv. i. 64 To dyet ranke Mindes, sicke of happinesse. c 1600 ― Sonn. cxviii, A healthful state Which, rank of goodness, would by ill be cured. 1631 T. Powell Tom All Trades 167 For an over⁓flowing, and Ranker disposition. |
† b. of immaterial things.
Obs.| 13.. E.E. Allit. P. C. 490 Is þis ryȝt-wys, þou renk, alle þy ronk noyse. a 1400 Isumbras 200 Nowther of tham myghte other stille, Thaire sorowe it was fulle ranke. c 1400 Destr. Troy 13902 Þan the ruerde wax ranke of þat rught fare. 1633 Heywood Eng. Trav. iii. Wks. 1874 IV. 44 To stop this clamor ere it grow too wrancke. |
c. High or excessive in amount.
Obs. exc. Law.
| 1602 Shakes. Ham. iv. iv. 22 Nor will it yield..A ranker rate, should it be sold in fee. 1765 Blackstone Comm. II. iii. §3. 30 The modus must not be too large, which in law is called a rank modus. 1885 Law Times Rep. LII. 536/2 The modus..was rank, that is to say, that is was a pecuniary payment greater than the value of the tithes. |
† 7. a. Abundant, copious.
Obs.| 1303 R. Brunne Handl. Synne 5095 In sum man vnkynde⁓hede ys so rank þat he ne may cunne no man þank For no gode dede. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. A. 843 Wolle quyte so ronk & ryf. c 1400 Destr. Troy 8511 He hade no ruthe of hor remyng, ne þe rank teris. a 1568 R. Ascham Scholem. ii. (Arb.) 112 Soch a rancke and full writer must use, if he will do wiselie, the exercise of a verie good kinde of epitome. 1579 Spenser Sheph. Cal. July 211 When folke bene fat, and riches rancke, It is a signe of helth. 1632 Lithgow Trav. vii. 301 The rank serene or dew of the night..refresheth all kindes of growing things. |
† b. Abounding in, full
of.
Obs.| a 1300 Cursor M. 21024 O reson was nan sa ranc. c 1400 Destr. Troy 9204 Of Rent, & of Riches, rankir þan I. 1575 R. B. Appius & Virg. B ij, I neuer heard one so rancke of rudeness. 1652 C. B. Stapylton Herodian iv. 29 Rank of successe he was so puft with pride. |
8. a. In close array, crowded together; thick, dense.
Obs. exc. north. dial.| a 1400–50 Alexander 1319 Alexander..Ridis euen þurȝe þe route þar rankest þai were. 1513 Douglas æneis iii. ix. 4 Than suddanlie, furth of the woddis ronk, We se a strange man. 1579 Spenser Sheph. Cal. July 4 A goteheard..Whose straying heard them selfe doth shrowde Emong the bushes rancke. 1788 Marshall Yorksh. Gloss. (E.D.S.), Rank, standing in close order; thick upon the ground, as corn in the field, or trees in a wood. 1823 Scoresby Acc. Whale Fish. 240 Endangered, while among rank ice, by a gale of wind. 1864 Mrs. E. Lynn Linton Lake Country 200 Where the sheep are ‘rank’ on the fell sides. |
b. Numerous, frequent.
Obs. exc. north. dial.| 1545 R. Ascham Toxoph. i. (Arb.) 93 The Archers of England should not be only a great deale ranker, and mo then they be; but also a good deale bygger and stronger. 1551 Robinson tr. More's Utop. i. (1895) 43 Theues..were in euery place so ryffe and ranke. 1642 Rogers Naaman To Rdr. b 3 b, Eighteene of this rable, all rife and ranke among us. 1868 Atkinson Cleveland Gloss., Rank, numerous, abundant, of frequent occurrence. |
9. techn. Projecting, standing out.
| 1678 Moxon Mech. Exerc. 111 The Iron of a Plain is said to be set Ranck, when its edge stands so flat below the Sole of the Plain, that in working it will take off a thick shaving. 1727–41 Chambers Cycl. s.v. Keel, When a ship has a deep keel, she is said to have a rank keel. 1867 F. Francis Angling i. (1880) 19 The barb is so rank..that it often takes some time to unhook the fish. 1884 Sci. Amer. 17 July 32 Whether the tool used was a roughing tool with rank feed or a finish tool with fine feed. |
III. Of a luxuriant, gross or coarse quality.
10. Covered or filled with a luxuriant (and coarse) growth of grass or plants.
rank pasture may also be taken in sense 5.
| a 1400–50 Alexander 3060 As fele..As risonis in a ranke fild quen riders it spillen. 1538 Starkey England i. iii. 98 When they [sheep] are closyd in ranke pasturys. 1612 Drayton Poly-olb. xiii. 398 Meadowes hugely ranke. 1735 Somerville Chase ii. 29 In hopes Of plenteous Forage, near the ranker Mead. 1821 Galt Sir A. Wylie I. 44 A small garden rank with apleringy and other fragrant herbs. 1890 G. A. Henty Lee in Virginia 209 The patch..though now rank with weeds, had evidently been carefully cultivated. |
11. Grossly rich, heavy, or fertile; liable to produce rank vegetation.
| c 1420 Pallad. on Husb. i. 104 Take the fatte and moyst is myn auise; Aftir hit the thikke and ronke is best. 1523 Fitzherb. Husb. §17 The moystnes of the dounge shall cause the grounde to be ranke ynoughe. 1615 G. Sandys Trav. 151 Full of flowrie hils ascending leisurely, and not much surmounting their rancker vallies. 1760 Brown Compl. Farmer ii. 22 Where land is rank, it is not good to sow wheat after a fallow. 1789 G. White Selborne i. (1853) 12 A rank clay that requires the labour of years to make it mellow. 1895 Tablet 9 Nov., The land is at first too ‘rank’ to grow corn or even root crops. |
12. a. Having an offensively strong smell; rancid.
† Also, smelling strongly
of.
| a 1529 Skelton E. Rummyng 540 She brought a bore pygge; The fleshe therof was ranke. 1615 G. Sandys Trav. 148 They are generally fat, and ranke of the sauors which attend vpon sluttish corpulency. 1656 Ridgley Pract. Physick 346 After that, add Discussives, as rank nuts. 1725 De Foe Voy. round World (1840) 84 Our men made some butter..but it grew rank and oily. 1800 Coleridge Piccolom. i. iv, Pirates,..crowded in the rank and narrow ship. 1878 B. Taylor Deukalion i. ii. 24 The incense rank in censers burned, which seem to mask some odour of decay. |
| fig. 1602 Shakes. Ham. iii. iii. 36 Oh my offence is ranke, it smels to heauen. 1664 H. More Myst. Iniq. Apol. 545 To smell too rank of down-right Atheism. |
b. Of smell: Offensively strong.
| 1570 Levins Manip. 24/28 Ranke smell, magnus odor, olidus. 1576 Fleming Panopl. Epist. 274 Some ranke stinking sauour. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iii. 628 With that rank Odour from thy Dwelling-place To drive the Viper's Brood. 1735 Pope Hor. Sat. ii. ii. 28 A stench..Rank as the ripeness of a rabit's tail. 1834 Pringle Afr. Sk. viii. 268 The smell of the hyæna crocuta is so rank and offensive that scarcely any animal will come near the carcase. |
† 13. Lustful, licentious; in heat.
Obs.| c 1520 Mayd Emlyn 289 in Hazlitt E.P.P. IV. 92 She was full ranke..In Venus toyes Was all her joyes. 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. i. iii. 81 The Ewes being rancke,..turned to the Rammes. 1611 ― Cymb. ii. v. 24 Lust, and ranke thoughts [are] hers. 1701 De Foe Trueborn Eng. i. 289 Their Rank Daughters.. Receiv'd all Nations with Promiscuous Lust. 1765 Treat. Dom. Pigeons 25 A merry rank hen will sometimes shew and play almost like a cock. |
14. a. Gross, highly offensive or loathsome; in later use
esp. grossly coarse or indecent.
| 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 760, I tene hem no more, But relece alle þat regioun of her ronk werkkez. c 1400 Destr. Troy 11775 Couetous..That rote is & rankist of all the rif syns. a 1529 Skelton Agst. Scottes 172 The rude ranke Scottes, lyke dronken dranes. 1611 Shakes. Wint. T. i. ii. 277 My Wife..deserues a Name As ranke as any Flax-Wench, that puts to Before her troth-plight. 1742 Young Nt. Th. v. 41 Hand in hand lead on the rank debauch. 1871 Morley Voltaire (1886) 5 The rank vocabulary of malice and hate. |
b. Corrupt, foul; festering.
| 1579 Gosson Sch. Abuse (Arb.) 17 Yeelding the ranke fleshe to the Chirurgions knife. 1597 Shakes. 2 Hen. IV, iii. i. 39 Then you perceiue..what ranke Diseases grow. 1634 Milton Comus 17 The rank vapours of this Sin-worn mould. 1727–46 Thomson Summer 1016 The scent Of steaming crowds, of rank disease, and death. 1862 Stanley Jewish Ch. (1877) I. ii. 26 Corrupt civilisation had growen up in the rank climate of that deep descent. |
15. a. Of a strongly marked, violent, or virulent type; absolute, downright, gross. (Used to add force to terms implying the existence of bad qualities in a person or thing.)
| 1513 Douglas æneis ii. iv. 37 Full of vennome and rank poyson. 1528 Roy Rede me, etc. (Arb.) 41 This is rancke heresy. 1550 Bale (title) The Apology of Johan Bale agaynste a ranke Papyst. c 1613 Middleton No Wit like a Woman's i. iii, 'Tis a most rank untruth. 1676 Marvell Mr. Smirke 12 The meanest Varlet, the dullest School-boy, the rankest Idiot. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 105 ¶5 What are these but rank Pedants? 1766 Fordyce Serm. Yng. Wom. (1767) I. iv. 148 Rank treason against the royalty of Virtue. 1809 Wellington in Gurw. Desp. (1837) V. 150 General Eguia's plan is rank nonsense. 1822–34 Good's Study Med. (ed. 4) II. 610 Those who are actually labouring under the disease, and in its rankest form. 1880 W. Day Racehorse in Training v. 40 A horse..which turned a rank roarer. |
b. Grossly apparent.
rare.
| 1624 Massinger Parlt. Love iv. i, 'Tis rank! The sight of my wife hath forced him to forget To counterfeit! 1784 Cowper Tiroc. 564 His pride resents the charge, although the proof Rise in his forehead, and seem rank enough. |
† B. n.3 Rankness, strength.
Obs. rare—1.
| 13.. E.E. Allit. P. C. 298 Þurȝ mony a regioun ful roȝe, þurȝ ronk of his wylle. |
C. adv. † 1. = rankly.
Obs.| 1590 Spenser F.Q. ii. iii. 6 The seely man, seeing him ryde so ranck..fell flatt to ground for feare. 1596 Ibid. iv. v. 33 The sound Of many yron hammers beating ranke. |
2. With
adjs.: Completely, extremely.
| 1607 Marston What you Will i. i, He's irrecoverable; mad, ranke madde. 1888 in Sheffield Gloss. |
D. Comb. a. Parasynthetic
adjs., as
rank-brained,
rank-leed,
rank-minded,
rank-scented,
rank-winged.
| 1614 Chapman Masque Mid. Temple Pref. A iij b, Insania, is that which euery *Ranck-brainde writer; and iudge of Poeticall writing, is rapt withal. |
| 1703 Art & Myst. Vintners 18 The ill savour of *Rank-lee'd French wine. |
| 1593 Harvey Pierce's Super. 147 Sweet Gossip,..the dunghill is your freehold:.. I know none so *rank-minded. |
| 1567 Golding Ovid's Met. x. (1593) 257 *Rankesented mints to make Of womens limmes. 1638 Junius Paint. Ancients 154 Some such like faces were painted neere the rank⁓sented mangers. |
| 1637 T. Morton New Eng. Canaan (1883) 196 These [Lannarets] are most excellent Mettell, *rank winged, well conditioned. a 1700 B. E. Dict. Cant. Crew, Rank-wing'd Hawk, that is a slow Fligher. |
b. With
pa. pples., as
rank-grown,
† rank-rode,
rank-set,
† rank-smelt.
| 1642 Vicars God in Mount (1644) 6 This evill weed so *rank-grown in the garden of the Kingdom. |
| c 1611 Chapman Iliad iv. 414 The *rank-rode Cadmeans..Lodg'd ambuscadoes for their foe. |
| 1615 R. Brathwait Strappado (1878) 87 Flora..them did put In her embrodred skirts which were *rancke set, With Prime-rose, Cow-slip, and the violet. 1823 P. Nicholson Pract. Builder 229 The edge of the iron of a plane is said to be rank-set when it projects considerably below the sole. |
| 1595 Barnfield Pecuniæ xxxi, Thy chafing hath begot A *ranke-smelt sauour. |
c. With
pres. pples., as
rank-feeding,
rank-riding,
rank-scenting,
rank-smelling,
rank-springing,
rank-swelling,
rank-tasting.
| c 1820 Philos. Recreat. 20 The skins of large, or *rank-feeding birds. |
| 1612 Drayton Poly-olb. iii. 40 The *rank-riding Scots upon their Gallowayes. |
| 1735 Somerville Chase iv. 171 O'er Plains with Flocks distain'd *Rank-scenting. |
| 1904 W. de la Mare Henry Brocken vii. 71 Near by me grew some *rank-smelling waterside plant. 1919 ‘K. Mansfield’ Let. 21 Nov. in Lett. to J. M. Murry (1951) 401, I remember standing in a rank-smelling field. |
| 1816 Scott Old Mort. i, *Rank-springing grass. |
| a 1649 Drummond of Hawthornden Poems Wks. (1711) 36 Loud-bellowing Clyde..*Rank-swelling Annan. |
| 1921 D. H. Lawrence Sea & Sardinia ii. 63 A massive yellow omelette..cooked in the usual *rank-tasting olive oil. |
d. rank-old adj.;
† rank-goat Obs. rare—0 (see
quot.).
| 1611 Cotgr., Blanche-putain, the hearbe *Ranke-goat, or stinking Motherwort. |
| a 1889 G. M. Hopkins Poems (1967) 179 What being in *rank-old nature should earlier have that breath been. |
▪ IV. rank, v.1 (
ræŋk)
Also 6–7
ranke,
ranck, (7
rancke).
[f. rank n.1] 1. a. trans. To arrange or draw up (persons,
esp. soldiers) in a rank or in ranks.
| 1573 Satir. Poems Reform. xxxix. 2 To ring ȝour drummis and rank ȝour men of weir. 1632 Lithgow Trav. v. 206, I haue seene hundreds of them after this manner, lie ranked like durty swine. 1667 Milton P.L. vi. 604 In view Stood rankt of Seraphim another row. 1726 Swift Gulliver iii. vii, We passed..between servants of the same sort, ranked on each side as before. 1814 Scott Ld. of Isles v. xiv, Upon the sand Let every leader rank his band. 1884 Harper's Mag. Nov. 884/2 The prisoners were then drawn up.., ranked six deep. |
| refl. 1612 Capt. Smith Wks. (Arb.) I. 72 These..ranked themselves 15 a breast, and each ranke from another 4 or 5 yards. 1686 tr. Chardin's Trav. Persia 88 They rank themselves, either in a circle, or side by side. 1726 Cavallier Mem. i. 99 My Men stood to their Arms, and ranked themselves in a fit Posture to receive them. 1865 Carlyle Fredk. Gt. vii. vii. (1872) II. 329 They all ranked themselves round me. |
† b. = dress v. 4 a.
Obs. rare—1.
| 1604 Edmonds Observ. Cæsar's Comm. 131 The leader of the left hand file..with the leader of the right hand file do alwaies in their marching and imbattelling rectifie or rancke the whole front of the battallion. |
2. a. To arrange (things) in a row or rows; to set in line; to put in order.
| 1590 Spenser F.Q. iii. vi. 35 And every sort is in a sondry bed Sett by it selfe, and ranckt in comely rew. 1650 Earl of Monmouth tr. Senault's Man bec. Guilty 304 He sought for stone..he ranked them with Symmetry. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 213 He knew to rank his Elms in even Rows. 1778 Reynolds Disc. viii. (1876) 453 A plain space in the middle, and the groups of figures ranked round this vacuity. 1833 Fraser's Mag. VIII. 62 Exerting all his mind in ranking up flower-pots. 1871 W. Alexander Johnny Gibb v. 45 The fishers gettin'..the nets rankit oot. |
| refl. 1707 Curiosities in Husb. & Gard. 331 Little Plants..rank'd themselves in order around the sides of the Vial. |
† b. To divide or form
into ranks or classes.
Obs.| 1630 Prynne Anti-Armin. 123 An equipage..which all Diuines haue rancked into different orders. 1690 Locke Hum. Und. iii. iii. §19 Those Things we are acquainted with, and have ranked into Bands, under distinct Names. |
† c. In
pa. pple., of a place: Surrounded or bounded with rows or ranks.
Obs.| 1607 Shakes. Timon i. i. 65 The Base o' th' Mount Is rank'd with all deserts, all kinde of Natures. 1623 J. Reynolds God's Revenge iii. xii. 79 A curious walk, ranked about with many rowes of Sycamore trees. 1698 Fryer Acc. E. India & P. 38 The Streets are sweet and clean, ranked with fine Mansions. |
3. a. To place, locate; to give a certain position or station to; to class or classify. With various constructions. Also
refl.| 1592 Shakes. Rom. & Jul. iii. ii. 117 If sower woe..needly will be rankt with other griefes. 1612 Brinsley Lud. Lit. 7 To ranke euery head in the right order and proper place. 1666 Dryden Ann. Mirab. Pref., Wks. (Globe) 38 Those who rank Lucan rather among historians in verse than epic poets. 1713 Berkeley in Guardian No. 49 ¶6 A stranger would be apt to rank me with the other domestics. 1777 F. Burney Evelina xxviii, Arguments, which..will rather rank me as an hermit. 1847 Tennyson Princ. ii. 32 Aftertime..Will rank you nobly, mingled up with me. 1875 Jowett Plato (ed. 2) III. 525 In ranking theories of physics first in the order of knowledge. |
b. Statistics. To assign a rank to (
rank n.1 9 a).
| 1907 Drapers' Company Res. Mem. (Biometric Ser.) IV. 25 It is easier to rank individuals than to measure their attributes accurately. 1944 Jrnl. Anat. LXXVIII. 185/1 The severity of the inflammation can easily be ranked, i.e. given an ordinal number. 1951 Brookes & Dick Introd. Statistical Meth. ix. 221 It is possible to rank depths of colour without requiring some form of graduated scale, and to rank dimensions of objects..by comparing one with another and arranging them in sequence. 1977 [see rank correlation s.v. rank n.1 12]. |
4. Sc. Law. To place (
orig. in order of precedence) on the list of claims, or of those having claims, on a bankrupt estate.
| 1695 [see ranking vbl. n.1 b]. 1711 Acts Sederunt 23 Nov. (1790) 251 The creditors shall..name the Lord..before whom their severall rights and interests are to be ranked. 1735 Ibid. 29 July (1790) 306 All creditors..shall come in, and be ranked pari passu upon the moveable estate. 1859 J. Lorimer Handbk. Law Scot. (1862) 307 All arrestments and poindings..shall be ranked pari passu. |
5. a. orig. and chiefly
U.S. To take precedence of.
| 1841 Southern Lit. Messenger VII. 766/1, I have Mr. Sanford under my command—I rank him,..and then I have charge of the whole ship. 1860 Congress. Globe 10 Dec. 27/3, I shall..submit a few reasons for this opinion..but not until other Senators are heard who rank me in age, experience, and wisdom. 1865 N.Y. Herald in Morning Star 27 May, ‘That's right’, politely observed Grant, ‘the President ranks us both’. 1893 J. Strong New Era 153 A growing class of idle rich,..who..rank Solomon himself in luxury. 1904 Delineator Dec. 933 The Secretary of State ranks all the other members of the Cabinet. 1907 [see importance 2 b]. 1976 J. Wainwright Who goes Next? 177 Bear..ranked Sullivan, neck-and-neck—they were both deputy chief constables. |
b. U.S. Mil. To deprive or turn (someone)
out of quarters, etc., by virtue of superior rank.
| 1872 F. M. A. Roe Army Lett. (1909) 66 Faye has been turned out of quarters—‘ranked out’, as it is spoken of in the Army. 1891 C. King Trials of Staff Officer 184 We were ‘ranked’ out of those quarters presently. 1932 L. H. Nason Among Trumpets 13 What's the good of havin' three stripes if you can't rank somebody out of a bunk or horse or something? |
c. U.S. Blacks. (See
quots.)
Cf. ranking vbl. n.1 c.
| 1971 C. Mitchell-Kernan in A. Dundes Mother Wit (1973) 316/2 ‘Barbara was trying to rank Mary’, to put her down by typing her. 1974 H. L. Foster Ribbin', Jivin', & Playin' Dozens iv. 171 Rank, to insult someone. 1978 English Jrnl. Dec. 56/1 ‘We're ranking people out.’..‘What does that mean?’ I asked... ‘We're saying things about other people to put them down,’ answered one helpful student. |
6. a. intr. To form a rank or ranks; to stand in rank; to take up a position in a rank.
| 1582 Stanyhurst æneis ii. (Arb.) 58 Soom bands of Troians..Ranck close too geather, thee Greeks most manlye repealing. 1605 Marston Dutch Courtezan iv. i, Harke they are at hande, ranke handsomly. 1796 Southey Hymn to Penates 11 In your holy train Jove proudly ranks. 1865 S. Ferguson Forging of Anchor i, Fitfully you still may see the grim smiths ranking round. |
b. To take or have a place in a certain rank or class; to have rank or place. Const. as in 3. Also in
phr. to rank high.
| 1599 Shakes. Hen. V, v. ii. 474, I pray you..Let that one Article ranke with the rest. 1745 Observ. conc. Navy 45 Colonels dispute the Right of Captains of Men of War ranking with them. 1784 Cowper Tiroc. 465 A principle..That..Ranks as a virtue, and is yet a vice. 1805 Mrq. Wellesley in Owen Desp. (1877) 499 Holkar never had ranked among the states of India. 1824 Macaulay in Knight's Q. Mag. II. 357 Ovid, Catullus, Tibullus, Horace, and Propertius, in spite of all their faults must be allowed to rank high in this department of the art. 1828 Carlyle Crit. & Misc. Ess. (1840) I. 157 This play should rank high among that class of works. 1850 Merivale Rom. Emp. (1865) II. xi. 17 Surenas ranked next to the king in birth, wealth and distinction. 1885 Nature 8 Jan. 223/2 The man who ranks 5th from the bottom of a class of 100 males would rank 10th from the top in a class of 100 females. 1932 N.Y. Times Book Rev. 3 Jan. 9/5 Nevertheless, as an imaginative humorist he ranks very high, and his omnibus can be warmly recommended to those who have hitherto been unfamiliar with his work. 1973 Daily Tel. (Colour Suppl.) 13 July 9/1 Diplomats caught have ranked up to ambassador. |
c. Law. Of creditors or claims (see 4). Also, to qualify
for.
| 1883 Law Times Rep. XLIX. 75/2 It was contended..that they were..creditors entitled to rank next after the outside creditors (if any), or even with them. 1891 Law Times XCII. 106/2 Burdens arising after the first registration of the land rank in the order of their registration. 1899 I. Pitman Commercial Corresp. xix. 197 Statement of Affairs: Cross Liabilities; Liabilities as Estimated by Debtor; Expected to Rank; [etc.]. 1928 Daily Mail 3 Aug. 18/2 The new shares did not rank for the interim dividend. 1930 Daily Express 22 May 7/4 Mr. Bottomley's amended statement of affairs showed gross liabilities {pstlg}116,769, ranking at {pstlg}115,899. 1976 Milton Keynes Express 11 June 13/1 There may well be very considerable sums to be spent on essential repairs which will not rank for subsidy aid. |
7. intr. To move or march in rank; chiefly
Mil. in
to rank past,
rank off.
| 1832 Prop. Reg. Instr. Cavalry iii. 59 In ranking past by Threes there is to be a horse's length from croup to head. 1833 Regul. Instr. Cavalry i. 64 They rank off alternately. 1840 Carlyle Heroes ii. (1858) 236 Your cattle..come ranking home at evening-time. |
8. trans. U.S. slang. a. To betray (a person), to give away (in
quot. refl.). Also, to apprehend in the act of committing a crime.
| 1929 [see fuzz n.3]. 1955 D. W. Maurer in Publ. Amer. Dial. Soc. xxiv. 175 Whiz dicks are on the lookout..to rank a pickpocket. |
b. To spoil or thwart (an action),
esp. in
phr. to rank the play.
| 1937 C. Himes Nigger in Black on Black (1973) 125 The landlady..had sent Mr. Shelton on up to catch him there in the hopes of ranking Fay's play. 1968–70 Current Slang (Univ. S. Dakota) III–IV. 101 Rank, to spoil. |
Hence
ˈranking ppl. a. (
freq. in sense 5 of the
vb.).
| 1863 Yale Lit. Mag. XXIX. 80 His two ranking officers both gone. 1865 Bill of Confed. States Amer. in Morning Star 2 Feb., An officer..designated as General-in-Chief, who shall be the ranking officer of the army..of the Confederate States. 1885 E. Custer Boots & Saddles xiii. 137 The ranking lady had a sabre which her chief had received as a present, and this she waved over the others in command. 1895 Daily News 27 Aug. 2/7 The total ranking liabilities may amount to between 15,000l. and 20,000l. 1906 Westm. Gaz. 4 Apr. 7/2 It was estimated that his [sc. the bankrupt's] ranking indebtedness would be about {pstlg}2,280. 1925 T. Dreiser Amer. Tragedy (1926) II. ii. xlvii. 73 These tall, close, ranking pines. 1931 Publishers' Weekly 20 June 2849/1 The publishing industry of this country..now takes a ranking place in the economic structure. 1962 Plano & Greenberg Amer. Polit. Dict. vii. 141 Ranking member, that member of the majority party on a legislative committee who ranks first after the chairman in number of years of continuous service (seniority) on the committee. 1970 E. R. Johnson God Keepers xii. 132 There was a lot of merit in having the ranking man right where the heat was going to be. 1974 P. Gore-Booth With Great Truth & Respect 315, I learned it on the afternoon of a Sunday on which we had arranged for a dinner in honour of Sir James Cassels, the new British Chief of the General Staff. The ranking guest was to be General Muchu Chaudhuri, the Indian Commander-in-Chief. 1976 Washington Post 19 Apr. b6/5 Six ranking generals carried the coffin to the simple military grave. 1976 H. Wilson Governance of Britain vii. 150, I approached Sir John Arbuthnot, then, as the Americans would have put it, ‘ranking’ Conservative Member on the Committee. 1978 R. Ludlum Holcroft Covenant xv. 175 The offspring of a ranking member of the Third Reich's High Command. |
▪ V. rank, v.2 rare.
Also 3
ronke.
[f. rank a.] † 1. intr. To grow rank; to rankle.
Obs. rare.
| a 1325 Prov. Hending xi. in Anglia IV. 193 Wel is him þat sunne hateþ, And þat hit leteþ and forsakeþ, Er hit ronke in rote. 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 205 An alblastere..smote him in þe schank..It began to rank, þe querelle Envenomed was. 1606 J. Davies Sel. 2nd Husband (Grosart) 9 T'will swell vnseene, Which ranking inward, outward shews thy teene. |
2. trans. To cause to project. (
Cf. rank a. 9.)
| 1867 F. Francis Angling xiv. 410 The point of the hook being ranked outwards slightly. |
▪ VI. † rank, v.3 intr. Obs. rare.
(Origin and precise sense not clear.)
| a 1529 Skelton Caudatos Anglos 56 That dronke asse, That ratis and rankis..On Huntley bankes. a 1783 Gil Brendon lxi. in Child Ballads I. 69/2 An ay she ranked, an ay she flang, Till a' the tokens came till her han. |
▪ VII. † rank, v.4 Obs. rare.
[ad. late L. rancāre (al. raucāre, raccāre).] intr. Of a tiger: To roar. Hence
† ˈranking vbl. n. and ppl. a.| 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 708 The voice of this beast is cald Ranking, according to this verse: Tigrides indomitæ rancant. Ibid., A tame Tiger..by her ranking and crying voice..made signes to her keeper for other meate. Ibid. 709 She maketh..great lamentation upon the Sea shoare howling, braying and rancking. |