Degré.
ETYM French, from échelle ladder, from Latin scala.
1. A body of troops arranged in a line.
2. A diffraction grating consisting of a pile of plates of equal thickness arranged stepwise with a constant offset.
(French) steplike arrangement of troops with divisions parallel but offset diagonally to rear; a section of a military command or other organisation.
ETYM Old Eng. ronge, AS. hrung, a staff, rod, pole; akin to German runge a short, thick piece of iron or wood, OD. ronghe a prop, support, Icel. röng a rib in a ship, Goth. Hrugga a staff.
A crosspiece between the legs of a chair; SYN. round, stave.