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Rank vs Wildebeest - What's the difference?

rank | wildebeest |

As nouns the difference between rank and wildebeest

is that rank is a row of people or things organized in a grid pattern, often soldiers [the corresponding term for the perpendicular columns in such a pattern is "file"] while wildebeest is gnu.

As an adjective rank

is strong of its kind or in character; unmitigated; virulent; thorough; utter.

As an adverb rank

is quickly, eagerly, impetuously.

As a verb rank

is to place abreast, or in a line.

rank

English

Etymology 1

From (etyl) .

Adjective

  • Strong of its kind or in character; unmitigated; virulent; thorough; utter.
  • Strong in growth; growing with vigour or rapidity, hence, coarse or gross.
  • * Bible, (w) xli. 5
    • And, behold, seven ears of corn came up upon one stalk, rank and good.
  • *{{quote-book, year=1944, author=(w)
    • , title= The Three Corpse Trick, chapter=5 , passage=The hovel stood in the centre of what had once been a vegetable garden, but was now a patch of rank weeds. Surrounding this, almost like a zareba, was an irregular ring of gorse and brambles, an unclaimed vestige of the original common.}}
  • Suffering from overgrowth or hypertrophy; plethoric.
  • * 1899 , (Joseph Conrad),
    • The moon had spread over everything a thin layer of silver—over the rank grass, over the mud, upon the wall of matted vegetation standing higher than the wall of a temple
  • Causing strong growth; producing luxuriantly; rich and fertile.
    • (Mortimer)
  • Strong to the senses; offensive; noisome.
  • Having a very strong and bad taste or odor.
  • * (Robert Boyle) (1627-1691)
    • Divers sea fowls taste rank of the fish on which they feed.
  • Complete, used as an intensifier (usually negative, referring to incompetence).
  • * {{quote-news, year=2011, date=March 1, author=Phil McNulty, work=BBC
    • , title= Chelsea 2-1 Man Utd , passage=Chelsea remain rank outsiders to retain their crown and they still lie 12 points adrift of United, but Ancelotti will regard this as a performance that supports his insistence that they can still have a say when the major prizes are handed out this season.}}
  • (label) Gross, disgusting.
  • (label) Strong; powerful; capable of acting or being used with great effect; energetic; vigorous; headstrong.
  • (label) Inflamed with venereal appetite.
    • (Shakespeare)
    Synonyms
    * (bad odor) stinky, smelly ** See also: pong (UK) * (complete) complete, utter

    Adverb

    (en adverb)
  • (obsolete) Quickly, eagerly, impetuously.
  • * 1590 , Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene , II.iii:
    • The seely man seeing him ryde so rancke , / And ayme at him, fell flat to ground for feare [...].
  • * Fairfax
    • That rides so rank and bends his lance so fell.

    Etymology 2

    (etyl) , which is of uncertain origin. Akin to (etyl) . More at (ring).

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A row of people or things organized in a grid pattern, often soldiers [the corresponding term for the perpendicular columns in such a pattern is "file"].
    • The front rank''' kneeled to reload while the second '''rank fired over their heads.
  • * {{quote-book, year=1907, author=
    • , title=The Dust of Conflict , chapter=7 citation , passage=Then there was no more cover, for they straggled out, not in ranks but clusters, from among orange trees and tall, flowering shrubs
  • # (chess) one of the eight horizontal lines of squares on a chessboard [the corresponding term for a vertical line is "file"].
  • (music) In a pipe organ, a set of pipes of a certain quality for which each pipe corresponds to one key or pedal.
  • One's position in a list sorted by a shared property such as physical location, population, or quality
    • Based on your test scores, you have a rank of 23.
    The fancy hotel was of the first rank.
  • (class)The level of one's position in a class-based society
  • a level in an organization such as the military
    • Private First Class (PFC) is the lowest rank in the Marines.
    He rose up through the ranks of the company from mailroom clerk to CEO.
  • (taxonomy) a level in a scientific taxonomy system
    • Phylum is the taxonomic rank below kingdom and above class.
  • (linear algebra) Maximal number of linearly independent columns (or rows) of a matrix.
  • The dimensionality of an array (computing) or tensor (mathematics).
  • (chess) one of the eight horizontal lines of squares on a chessboard (i.e., those which run from letter to letter). The analog vertical lines are the files .
    • Derived terms
    * break rank * close ranks * pull rank

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To place abreast, or in a line.
  • To have a ranking.
    • Their defense ranked third in the league.
  • To assign a suitable place in a class or order; to classify.
  • * I. Watts
    • Ranking all things under general and special heads.
  • * Broome
    • Poets were ranked in the class of philosophers.
  • * Dr. H. More
    • Heresy is ranked with idolatry and witchcraft.
  • (US) To take rank of; to outrank.

    • Anagrams

    * * * English intensifiers ----

    wildebeest

    English

    (wikipedia wildebeest)

    Noun

    (en-noun)
  • (South Africa) Gnu.