Race Definition

rās
raced, races, racing
noun
races
A group of people identified as distinct from other groups because of supposed physical or genetic traits shared by the group. Most biologists and anthropologists do not recognize race as a biologically valid classification, in part because there is more genetic variation within groups than between them.
American Heritage Medicine
The state of belonging to such a population.
Webster's New World
A group of people united or classified together on the basis of common history, nationality, or geographic distribution.
The Celtic race.
American Heritage Medicine
The qualities, traits, etc. belonging, or supposedly belonging, to such a population.
Webster's New World
Humans considered as a group.
American Heritage Medicine
Synonyms:
verb
raced, races, racing
To compete in a contest of speed.
American Heritage
To move rapidly or at top speed.
We raced home. My heart was racing with fear.
American Heritage
To run too rapidly due to decreased resistance or unnecessary provision of fuel.
Adjusted the idle to keep the engine from racing.
American Heritage
To compete against in a race.
American Heritage
To cause to compete in a race.
She races horses for a living.
American Heritage
Synonyms:
adjective
Designating or of music, films, etc. featuring black performers and intended mainly for a black audience.
Webster's New World
Relating to race; racial.
Race relations; race quotas.
American Heritage Medicine
prefix

(chemistry) Denoting a racemic mix or racemate of enantiomers.

Wiktionary
idiom
the (human) race
  • all people collectively
Webster's New World

Other Word Forms of Race

Noun

Singular:
race
Plural:
races

Idioms, Phrasal Verbs Related to Race

  • the (human) race

Origin of Race

  • From Middle English race, from Old Norse rás (“a running, race"), from Proto-Germanic *rÄ“sō (“a course"), from Proto-Indo-European *res-, *eres- (“to flow"). Akin to Old English rÇ£s (“a race, swift or violent running, rush, onset"), Middle Low German râs (“a strong current"). Compare Danish ræs, Norwegian and Swedish ras.

    From Wiktionary

  • Another possible source is Lombardic raiza "line", a literal rendering of Latin linea sanguinis "bloodline of descent". Raiza is of Germanic origin, akin to Old High German reiza "line", Old Norse rÄ«ta "to score, log, outline".

    From Wiktionary

  • Some authorities suggest derivation from Old Spanish raza, rasa, from earlier ras, res "head of cattle", from Arabic رأس (ra's, “head"). This, however, is difficult to support, since Italian razza predates the Spanish word.

    From Wiktionary

  • A third possibility is that the Italian razza derives from Latin ratio through an unattested intermediate form *razzo.

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English ras from Old Norse rās rush, running ers- in Indo-European roots

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • French from Old French from Old Italian razza race, lineage

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • From Middle French race, from Italian razza, of uncertain origin.

    From Wiktionary

  • From Middle French, from Latin radix

    From Wiktionary

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