Meaning

noun a position on a scale of intensity or amount or quality

noun a specific identifiable position in a continuum or series or especially in a process

noun an award conferred by a college or university signifying that the recipient has satisfactorily completed a course of study

originFrom Middle English degre, borrowed from Old French degré (French: degré), itself from Latin gradus, with the prefix de-.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0