net

A2 · Elementary Countable noun Sports

n. the barrier in the middle of a tennis court or the area where you score a goal in football.

n. the mesh structure used to divide a court in sports like tennis or to capture the ball in goal-based sports.

“The striker kicked the ball hard into the back of the net to score the winning goal.”

“The tennis player rushed to the net to finish the point with a decisive volley before his opponent could recover.”

B1 · Intermediate Uncountable noun Computing Informal

n. a short name for the internet.

n. a common clipping for the Internet; often used with the definite article.

“I spent an hour surfing the net looking for cheap flights to Spain.”

“The rapid expansion of the net has fundamentally altered how information is disseminated and consumed across global markets.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate Uncountable noun

n. the final amount of money left after you take away costs or taxes.

n. the ultimate amount remaining after all necessary deductions, such as taxes or expenses, have been subtracted.

“After paying for the venue and the food, our net from the ticket sales was very small.”

“The company reported a significant increase in its annual net, despite rising operational costs in the third quarter.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate

v. to catch something using a net or a clever plan.

v. to capture or trap an object or person, either literally with a mesh device or figuratively through a stratagem.

“The researchers managed to net several rare butterflies for their study.”

“The police operation successfully netted several high-ranking members of the smuggling ring after months of surveillance.”

C1 · Advanced Formal

v. to earn a specific amount of money as a final profit.

v. to receive a sum of money as a clear profit after all expenses have been accounted for.

“The sale of the old house will net them a huge profit.”

“The divestment of the subsidiary is expected to net the parent company over fifty million dollars in liquid assets.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate

adj. describes an amount of money that is left after taxes or costs are taken away.

adj. denoting the remaining value or weight after all deductions or the weight of the container have been excluded.

“Her net monthly income is much lower than her total salary because of taxes.”

“The net weight of the product is clearly labelled on the packaging to distinguish it from the weight of the glass jar.”

C1 · Advanced Formal

adv. the final result or amount after everything is considered.

adv. in a net manner; as a final result after all factors or deductions are considered.

“The project cost more than expected, but net, it was still a success.”

“While some jobs were lost during the merger, the region gained positions net, resulting in a stronger local economy.”