Grading

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /ˈɡɹeɪdɪŋ/

Definitions

1. The act of classifying and evaluating various items or performances to establish levels of excellence or condition
2. A systematic approach to analyzing and ranking performances, assignments, or objects according to their merits or quality
3. The process of determining the quality or value of something by assigning scores or ranks ; the act of shaping or smoothing terrain to a desired slope or condition

Etymology: The idea of "grading" starts with walking. Latin "gradus" meant "a step, pace, degree," and it grew from an ancient root meaning "to walk, go," which also gave Gothic "griþs" ("step, grade") and Lithuanian "gridiju" ("to go, wander"). A step is a measured move up or down, and that sense of ordered progress is what later made "grade" a rank on a scale. The word reached English by way of Middle French "grade," meaning "a grade or degree." Its path from a physical stride to a ranked position on a ladder is the key to the modern sense. Once something has steps, it can be placed on one, and to grade something is to put it on that ladder according to quality or condition. Grading, then, is the act of assigning those positions: sorting essays, produce, coins, or performances onto a scale of excellence. The verb carries the old footstep image inside it, with each mark a step up or down the same ladder.

Synonyms: ranking, scoring, evaluating, assessing, classifying