This paper describes a systematic attempt to isolate various parameters that affect the material removal rate for diamond grinding of silicon nitride ceramics. The influence of different coolants and operating parameters such as force, depth of cut, and diamond grit size on the material removal rates under controlled conditions of single pass grinding is determined. Several parameters were developed to aid in interpretation of the grinding results. The parameters include grinding force coefficient, retained grinding efficiency, and instantaneous grinding rate. A grinding map concept was developed to allow rapid visual evaluation of grinding performance for a given coolant and a set of operating conditions.