.NET is a framework. Most devs and knowledgeable people refer to it as such. There are a number of languages such as VB.NET, C#, F# which are supported by the framework.

.NET isn't a framework?

Seems like ".NET" encompasses more than just a framework, but there is definitely something called "The .NET Framework." [1][2]

[1]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.NET_Framework

[2]http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=17851