Ground

Ground, grownd, n. the surface of the earth: a portion of the earth's surface: land, field, soil: the floor, &c.: position: field or place of action: (lit. or fig.) that on which something is raised: foundation: sufficient reason: (art) the surface on which the figures are represented.—v.t. to fix on a foundation or principle: to instruct in first principles: to cover with a layer of plaster, &c., as a basis for painting: to coat with a composition, as a surface to be etched.—v.i. to strike the bottom and remain fixed.—ns. Ground′age, the tax paid by a ship for the space occupied while in port; Ground′-ang′ling, fishing without a float, with a weight placed a few inches from the hook—called also Bottom-fishing; Ground′-ash, a sapling of ash; Ground′-bait, bait dropped to the bottom of the water.—adv. Ground′edly (Browning), on good grounds.—ns. Ground′er, at baseball, &c., a ball thrown low rather than rising into the air; Ground′-floor, the floor of a house on a level with the street or exterior ground; Ground′-game, hares, rabbits, as distinguished from winged game; Ground′-hog, the American marmot, or woodchuck: the aardvark of Africa; Ground′-hold (Spens.), ground-tackle; Ground-ice, the ice formed at the bottom of a water first—also An′chor-ice; Ground′ing, the background of embroidery, &c.; Ground′-ī′vy, a common British creeping-plant whose leaves were once used for flavouring ale (gill-ale or gell-ale).—adj. Ground′less, without ground, foundation, or reason.—adv. Ground′lessly.—ns. Ground′lessness; Ground′ling, a fish which keeps near the bottom of the water, esp. the spinous loach: a spectator in the pit of a theatre—-hence one of the common herd: (pl.) the vulgar.—adj. (Lamb) base.—ns. Ground′-nut, ground-bean, or pea-nut, the fruit of the annual leguminous plant Arachis hypogæa; Ground′-oak, a sapling of oak; Ground′-plan, plan of the horizontal section of the lowest or ground story of a building: Ground′-plot, the plot of ground on which a building stands; Ground′-rent, rent paid to a landlord for the use of the ground for a specified term, usually in England ninety-nine years.—n.pl. Grounds, dregs of drink: sediment at the bottom of liquors (explained by Skeat as Celtic—Gael. grunndas, lees, grunnd, bottom, Ir. gruntas, grunnt, bottom).—ns. Ground′sell, Ground′sill, the timber of a building which lies next to the ground; Ground-squirr′el, the chipmuck or hackee; Ground′-swell, a broad, deep undulation of the ocean, proceeding from a distant storm; Ground′-tack′le, the tackle necessary for securing a vessel at anchor; Ground′work, that which forms the ground or foundation of anything: the basis: the essential part: the first principle.—Ground annual, in the law of Scotland, an annual payment, sometimes called a rent-charge, made for land—a substitute for feu-duty.—Be on one's own ground, to be dealing with a matter in which one is specially versed; Break ground, to take the first step in any project; Fall to the ground, to come to nothing; Gain ground, to advance, to obtain an advantage; Give ground, to yield advantage; Lose ground, to retire, to lose advantage; Slippery ground, an insecure footing; Stand, or Hold, one's ground, to stand firm. [A.S. grund; most prob. grund-en, pa.p. of grindan, and orig. meaning 'earth ground small;' cog. with Ger. grund, Ice. grunnr.]