rank

rank1 [ ræŋk ] noun **

1. ) count or uncount someone's official position in the military, police force, fire department, etc.:

Her rank when she retired was captain.

rank of: He joined in 1998, and quickly rose to the rank of detective.

senior/junior rank: Let me speak to an officer of more senior rank.

a ) someone's position or job in an organization:

rank of: She had reached the rank of chief financial officer by the time she was 30.

b ) someone's status in society compared to the status of other people:

In the past, dress, speech, and table manners indicated your social rank.

people of high rank

2. ) count a line of people, especially soldiers:

They marched in ranks of five.

a ) a number of things arranged in a line:

rows of women seated at orderly ranks of computers

b ) BRITISH a place where taxis wait in a line for customers

3. ) ranks plural all the people within a group, organization, etc.:

This reversal of policy touched off a violent dispute within the party ranks.

join the ranks (of something): Another Republican senator joins the ranks of the presidential hopefuls.

swell the ranks (=make a group bigger): The organization is looking for young people to swell their ranks.

a ) the ranks all the members of a military organization who are not officers:

be reduced to the ranks (=have your officer rank taken away as a punishment): At the court-martial Captain Bomford was reduced to the ranks.

break ranks

1. ) to stop belonging to or supporting a group

2. ) if soldiers, police officers, etc. break ranks, they stop standing in lines

close ranks

if members of a group close ranks, they support each other against people who are trying to defeat, harm, or criticize them

pull rank (on someone)

to use your authority to achieve a goal by giving a direct order to someone who you would usually treat as a friend or as a person of equal status as you

rise through the ranks

to continue moving to more important or responsible positions in a company or organization

rank

rank 2 [ ræŋk ] verb *

1. ) intransitive to be good, bad, important, unimportant, etc. compared with other similar things:

rank high/low etc.: We live in a society in which comfort ranks very high.

rank as: This must rank as one of the most violent fights ever seen on television.

rank among: Flying still ranks among the safest forms of travel.

2. ) transitive to put someone or something into a position according to their success, importance, size, etc.:

Nomura is now ranked third among the world's information services companies.

3. ) transitive AMERICAN to OUTRANK someone

4. ) transitive FORMAL to arrange objects neatly in lines

rank

rank 3 [ ræŋk ] adjective

1. ) having a strong unpleasant smell or taste

2. ) complete: used for emphasizing how bad or obvious something is:

He is a rank amateur.

3. ) MAINLY LITERARY growing and spreading too much:

rank vegetation