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the amount of a charge or payment with reference to some basis of calculation:
a high rate of interest on loans.
a certain quantity or amount of one thing considered in relation to a unit of another thing and used as a standard or measure:
at the rate of 60 miles an hour.
a fixed charge per unit of quantity:
a rate of 10 cents a pound.
price; cost:
to cut rates on all home furnishings.
degree of speed, progress, etc.:
to work at a rapid rate.
degree or comparative extent of action or procedure:
the rate of increase in work output.
relative condition or quality; grade, class, or sort.
assigned position in any of a series of graded classes; rating.
Insurance. the premium charge per unit of insurance.
a charge by a common carrier for transportation, sometimes including certain services involved in rendering such transportation.
a wage paid on a specified time basis:
a salary figured on an hourly rate.
a charge or price established in accordance with a scale or standard:
hotel rates based on length of stay.
Horology. the relative adherence of a timepiece to perfect timekeeping, measured in terms of the amount of time gained or lost within a certain period.
Usually, rates. British.

a tax on property for some local purpose.
any tax assessed and paid to a local government, as any city tax or district tax.

to estimate the value or worth of; appraise:
to rate a student’s class performance.
to esteem, consider, or account:
He was rated one of the best writers around.
to fix at a certain rate, as of charge or payment.
to value for purposes of taxation or the like.
to make subject to the payment of a certain rate or tax.
to place in a certain rank, class, etc., as a ship or a sailor; give a specific rating to.
to be considered or treated as worthy of; merit:
an event that doesn’t even rate a mention in most histories of the period.
to arrange for the conveyance of (goods) at a certain rate.
to have value, standing, etc.:
a performance that didn’t rate very high in the competition.
to have position in a certain class.
to rank very high in estimation:
The new teacher really rates with our class.
at any rate,

in any event; in any case.
at least:
It was a mediocre film, but at any rate there was one outstanding individual performance.

noun
a quantity or amount considered in relation to or measured against another quantity or amount: a rate of 70 miles an hour

a price or charge with reference to a standard or scale: rate of interest, rate of discount
(as modifier): a rate card

a charge made per unit for a commodity, service, etc
See rates
the relative speed of progress or change of something variable; pace: he works at a great rate, the rate of production has doubled

relative quality; class or grade
(in combination): first-rate ideas

(statistics) a measure of the frequency of occurrence of a given event, such as births and deaths, usually expressed as the number of times the event occurs for every thousand of the total population considered
a wage calculated against a unit of time
the amount of gain or loss of a timepiece
at any rate, in any case; at all events; anyway
verb (mainly transitive)
(also intransitive) to assign or receive a position on a scale of relative values; rank: he is rated fifth in the world
to estimate the value of; evaluate: we rate your services highly
to be worthy of; deserve: this hotel does not rate four stars
to consider; regard: I rate him among my friends
(Brit) to assess the value of (property) for the purpose of local taxation
(slang) to think highly of: the clients do not rate the new system
verb
(transitive) to scold or criticize severely; rebuke harshly
n.

“estimated value or worth,” early 15c., from Old French rate “price, value” and directly from Medieval Latin rata (pars) “fixed (amount),” from Latin rata “fixed, settled,” fem. past participle of reri “to reckon, think” (see reason (n.)). Meaning “degree of speed” (prop. ratio between distance and time) is attested from 1650s. Currency exchange sense first recorded 1727. First-rate, second-rate, etc. are 1640s, from British Navy division of ships into six classes based on size and strength. Phrase at any rate originally (1610s) meant “at any cost;” weakened sense of “at least” is attested by 1760.
v.

“to scold,” late 14c., probably from Old French reter “to impute blame, accuse, find fault with,” from Latin reputare “to count over, reflect,” in Vulgar Latin, “to impute, blame” (see reputation). Related: Rated; rating.

“estimate the worth or value of,” mid-15c., from rate (n.). Intransitive sense of “have a certain value, rank, or standing” is from 1809; specifically as “have high value” from 1928. Related: Rated; rating.

rate 1 (rāt)
n.

A quantity measured with respect to another measured quantity.

A measure of a part with respect to a whole; a proportion.

verb

To merit; deserve: He rates a big cheer, folks (1920+)
To be highly esteemed: What stunt did he ever pull that makes him rate? (1940s+)

Related Terms

first-rate
In any event, whatever the case may be; also, at least. For example, At any rate, I promise to be there even if I’m a little late, or It may not pay well, but at any rate it’s a job. [ Early 1600s ]
Also see: in any case
see:

at any rate
at this rate
x-rated