Gridding

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The act of dividing a space into a series of connected squares or rectangles for planning or layout purposes
2. A method for organizing information or data systematically within a structured format
3. The process of aligning objects or images in a consistent pattern to create visual order and coherence

Etymology: "Gridding" is the form of "grid" used for the activity itself, and the noun it comes from is short for an older word. "Grid" was formed by cutting down "griddle" or "gridiron," both of which took their shape from the same ancient idea of a barred frame. The two words "grate" and "grill" come from that same root and have kept the same sense of parallel bars, so "grid" is a doublet of them: a relative that entered the language by a different route. The original object was a cooking tool, a set of metal bars held over a fire, and the sense of a regular pattern of crossed lines came later. Once a grid meant a network of intersecting lines, it became natural to speak of laying one over a map, a city, or a plot of ground. "Gridding" names the work of doing that, marking out a space into a network of equal squares so that everything can be located and arranged within it.

Synonyms: mapping, layout