Skip to content
ontologydriven
Sign out

Dictionary

Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

dragnet en · NOUN

Pronunciation

  • /ˈdɹeɪ̯ɡˌnɛt/ Upper Midwestern US, Northwestern US, Canada
  • (US) audio
  • /ˈdɹæɡˌnɛt/ (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

From drag + net, probably based on the model of Middle English draynet, dreynett (“dragnet”), Old English dræġnet, dræġnett (“dragnet”), equivalent to dray + net. Cognate with Swedish dragnät, Norwegian dragnett, from Icelandic dragnet.

Meanings

  1. A net dragged across the bottom of a body of water.
    • Anchovy dragnets are an important part Korea's fishing sector. Over 99% of catches found in anchovy dragnets are anchovy. Although the annual total catches of anchovy have fluctuated, dragnets catch 55 to 70% of the total annual catch of anchovy. The remaining portion is caught with drift gill nets (10%) and other fishing methods. 2000, Transition to Responsible Fisheries Economic and Policy Implications, OECD Publishing, →ISBN, page 228:
  2. (figuratively) A heightened effort by law enforcement personnel undertaken in order to capture suspects.
    • The use of algorithms in policing is one example of their increasing influence on our lives.[…]who, if anyone, is policing their use[?] Such concerns were sharpened further by the continuing revelations about how the US National Security Agency (NSA) has been using algorithms to help it interpret the colossal amounts of data it has collected from its covert dragnet of international telecommunications. 2013 July 26, Leo Hickman, “How algorithms rule the world”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 7, page 26:

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
dragnets Number=Plur lexicographic
drag-net alternative lexicographic
drag net alternative lexicographic

Deriveds

dragnet mortgage

Translations (48)

gl boliche (net dragged across the bottom) · pl włók (net dragged across the bottom) · ru сеть (net dragged across the bottom) · it retata (Heightened efforts by law-enforcement personnel to capture suspects.) · lut ʔəxʷadᶻad (net dragged across the bottom) · arz شبكة (net dragged across the bottom) · it rete a strascico (net dragged across the bottom) · gl varredeira (net dragged across the bottom) · gl endeño (net dragged across the bottom) · ru не́вод (net dragged across the bottom) · gl patexeira (net dragged across the bottom) · sv not (net dragged across the bottom) · de Schleppnetz (net dragged across the bottom) · gl rasca (net dragged across the bottom) · ms pukat (net dragged across the bottom) · cmn 拖網 /拖网 (net dragged across the bottom) · ja 引き網 (net dragged across the bottom) · pt rasca (net dragged across the bottom) · fi pohjatrooli (net dragged across the bottom) · mi kaharoa (net dragged across the bottom) · nn not (net dragged across the bottom) · cop ⲥⲁⲅⲏⲛⲏ (net dragged across the bottom) · gl braba (net dragged across the bottom) · ilo daklis (net dragged across the bottom) · it sciabica (net dragged across the bottom) · da eftersøgning (Heightened efforts by law-enforcement personnel to capture suspects.) · pt arrastão (net dragged across the bottom) · ru бре́день (net dragged across the bottom) · de Schleppnetzfahndung (Heightened efforts by law-enforcement personnel to capture suspects.) · es red de arrastre (net dragged across the bottom) · es red barredera (net dragged across the bottom) · da slæbevod (net dragged across the bottom) · da slæbegarn (net dragged across the bottom) · gl salabardo (net dragged across the bottom) · grc σαγήνη (net dragged across the bottom) · gl sabaleira (net dragged across the bottom) · es redada (Heightened efforts by law-enforcement personnel to capture suspects.) · mk влак (net dragged across the bottom) · ar شبكة (net dragged across the bottom) · nrf drannet (net dragged across the bottom) · nb not (net dragged across the bottom) · ru трал (net dragged across the bottom) · pl obława (Heightened efforts by law-enforcement personnel to capture suspects.) · la tragula (net dragged across the bottom) · gl bou (net dragged across the bottom) · fr chalut (net dragged across the bottom) · nl sleepnet (net dragged across the bottom) · es chinchorro (net dragged across the bottom)

dragnet en · VERB

Pronunciation

  • /ˈdɹeɪ̯ɡˌnɛt/ Upper Midwestern US, Northwestern US, Canada
  • (US) audio
  • /ˈdɹæɡˌnɛt/ (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

From drag + net, probably based on the model of Middle English draynet, dreynett (“dragnet”), Old English dræġnet, dræġnett (“dragnet”), equivalent to dray + net. Cognate with Swedish dragnät, Norwegian dragnett, from Icelandic dragnet.

Meanings

  1. (transitive) To drag a net across the bottom of a body of water.
    • When ponds are cleaned out periodically, fish are trapped or dragnetted and finally the pond is drained to remove all fish. 2013, Brian Andrews, Ornamental Fish Farming:
  2. (figuratively, transitive) To undertake a heightened effort to catch a suspect.
    • A May Day anti-capitalist protest last year in Seattle saw clashes between police and protesters, and the FBI had been dragnetting potential anarchists. 2013 September 19, Audrey Black, “Targeting Oppression”, in Eugene Weekly:
    • In fact, Carty was not the man, but, after a police swoop had dragnetted twenty men suspected of having taken part in the business, he was lodged in Sligo jail and accused of this violence to the lady. 2010, Florence O'Donoghue, IRA Jailbreaks 1918-1921, →ISBN, page 164:

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
drag-net alternative lexicographic
dragnets Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres lexicographic
dragnetting Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part lexicographic
dragnetted Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part lexicographic
dragnetted Tense=Past lexicographic
drag net alternative lexicographic