| 释义 |
de·gree
I. \də̇ˈgrē, dēˈ-\ noun
(-s)
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle English , from Old French degré, from (assumed) Vulgar Latin degradus, from Latin de- + gradus step, pace — more at grade
1.
a. obsolete : one member of a flight of steps or stairs
b. heraldry : a step (as of a Calvary cross) in a series — called also grece
c. archaic : a steplike member of a series (as of parts of a structure) : tier, bank
2.
a. : a step in a process, course, or classificatory order
< shall the shadow go forward ten degrees or go back ten degrees — 2 Kings 20:9 (Authorized Version) >
b. : a stage or point of an advance or retrogression
< rising by successive degrees to become general manager of the firm >
c. : a measure of damage to tissue caused by disease or other force — compare class 3b, grade 1c(3)
3.
a. : a grade or point observed in a measuring or estimating of an action, relation, state of being, or mental attitude
< at a microphone they are men who know the pecuniary value of words inflated to the right degree — O.D.Duncan >
< the degree to which the total effect resembles nature — Michael Kitson >
b. : the extent, measure, or scope of an action, condition, or relation
< all of our presidents in varying degrees have experienced an intoxicating exhilaration in manipulating the levers of power — V.L.Albjerg >
< I considered my giddiness and inconstancy when in London as in a great degree the cause of her unhappiness — Benjamin Franklin >
c. : level in the range and stress or accentuation of an attribute : relative efficacy : measure or dimension of an essential or distinctive quality
< the mental powers of ants differ from those of men not so much in kind as in degree — John Lubbock >
< it is a question of degree whether I have been negligent — B.N.Cardozo >
< most of the distinctions of law are distinctions of degree — O.W.Holmes †1935 >
d. : a grade or point marking the attainment or existence of more or less of a quality, acquirement, or aspect : relative intensity
< combined literary distinction with a high degree of historical objectivity — R.W.Van Alstyne >
< requiring a high degree of mastery in the chosen field of study >
< the precise degree of probability >
e. : a positive and unquestionable though undefined quantitative measure and qualitative elevation
< the duties owed by the trustee have a degree of definition and are enforceable before a court of equity — G.B.Hurff >
< the religious zeal of the Quakers was always tempered by a degree of tolerance — American Guide Series: Pennsylvania >
f. : one of the forms or sets of forms used in the comparison of an adjective or adverb to denote a particular intensity or level of the quality, quantity, or relation expressed by the adjective or adverb — see comparative 1, positive 2a, superlative 1
g. : a legal measure of the culpability of one who commits any of certain crimes that depends on attendant circumstances defined by law
< an offense in the first degree is usually the most serious; among the offenses classified in this manner are often found murder or robbery >
h. : one of the legal classes of negligence (as gross, ordinary, or slight) graded according to the determined culpability of the tort-feasor
4. : a rank or grade of official, ecclesiastical, or social position or advancement
< people of low degree were banished from the capital — E.R.Embree >
< clerical hats colored and tasselled according to their degree — Iain Moncreiffe >
< a certain well-to-do air about the man suggested that he was not poor for his degree — Thomas Hardy >
5.
a. archaic : a particular level, standing, or relative condition especially as to dignity, reputation, worth
< for they that have used the office of a deacon well purchase to themselves a good degree — 1 Tim 3:13 (Authorized Version) >
b. : the civil condition or status of a person
6. : a step in a direct line of descent or in the line of ascent to a common ancestor and thence in line of descent to relatives by consanguinity
7.
a. : a grade or class of membership attained in a ritualistic order or society denoting a stage of proficiency often after a set ordeal or examination
b. : the formal ceremonies observed in the conferral of such a distinction
c. : a title conferred upon students by a college, university, or professional school upon completion of a unified program of study carrying a specified minimum of credits, passing of certain examinations, and often completion of a thesis or other independent research project — compare associate III 4b
d. : an academic title conferred honorarily in recognition of outstanding individual achievement outside the conferring institution
< his writings brought him an award of the degree of Doctor of Humane Letters >
8. archaic : a position or space on the earth or in the heavens as measured by degrees of latitude
9. : one of the divisions or intervals marked on a scale of a measuring instrument or a gauge
< the length of a degree depends on the expansion of the thermometric substance used — A.H.Thiessen >
10. : a 360th measure for arcs and angles
11.
a. : the sum of the exponents of the variable factors of a monomial
< a2b3c is of the sixth degree >
b. : the sum of the exponents of the variables or unknowns of the term of highest degree in a polynomial or polynomial equation
c. : the greatest power of the derivative of highest order in a differential equation after the equation has been cleared of fractions with respect to the derivative
< d²y/dx² - 2(dy/dx)² -4=0 is of the first degree >
12. music
a. : a line or space of the staff — compare ledger line
b. : a step, note, or tone of a scale
< the mediant is the third degree of the scale >
13. logic : the rank of a predicate according to the number of terms related by it
< “before” is a predicate of the second, “between” of the third degree >
•
- by degrees
- to a degree
II. transitive verb
(degreed ; degreed ; degreeing ; degrees)
1. obsolete : to advance by steps or degrees
2. : to confer a degree upon |