What does "grate" mean?
A horizontal metal grill through which liquid, ash, or small objects can fall, while larger objects cannot.
Grate
/ɡɹeɪt/ adj, noun, verb
adj, noun, verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A horizontal metal grill through which liquid, ash, or small objects can fall, while larger objects cannot.
- Grammar: grate is listed as adj, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: ablate, abrade, abrase, afflict.
- Useful contrasts: calm, open hole, open passage.
- Usage evidence: Dan entered the facility through a damaged metal grate.
How to use "grate"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "grate" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "grate" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "grate" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "grate" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "grate" is acting as adj, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "ablate" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "grate", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A horizontal metal grill through which liquid, ash, or small objects can fall, while larger objects cannot.
"The grate stopped the sheep from escaping from their field."
- 2 a frame of iron bars to hold a fire wordnet
- 3 A frame or bed, or kind of basket, of iron bars, for holding fuel while burning.
- 4 a barrier that has parallel or crossed bars blocking a passage but admitting air wordnet
- 5 A grapper, a metal ring on a lance behind the grip. historical
"Lances (only shown at Stoke D'Abernon) were commonly made of ash, about 13 feet long. A ring of metal (grate or grapper) was fastened to the shaft and during a fight[…]"
Show 1 more definition
- 6 a harsh rasping sound made by scraping something wordnet
Verb
- 1 To furnish with grates; to protect with a grating or crossbars. transitive
"to grate a window"
- 2 To shred (things, usually foodstuffs), by rubbing across a grater. transitive
"I need to grate the cheese before the potato is cooked."
- 3 scratch repeatedly wordnet
- 4 To make an unpleasant rasping sound, often as the result of rubbing against something. intransitive
"1856, Gustave Flaubert, Madame Bovary, Part 3 Chapter X, translated by Eleanor Marx-Aveling The gate suddenly grated. It was Lestiboudois; he came to fetch his spade, that he had forgotten. He recognised Justin climbing over the wall, and at last knew who was the culprit who stole his potatoes."
- 5 make a grating or grinding sound by rubbing together wordnet
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 To get on one's nerves; to irritate, annoy. broadly, intransitive
"She’s nice enough, but she can begin to grate if there is no-one else to talk to."
- 7 reduce to small shreds or pulverize by rubbing against a rough or sharp perforated surface wordnet
- 8 To annoy. broadly, transitive
"2015, Art Levy in Florida Trend, Roland Martin is a Florida 'Icon' one of the issues that's kind of grating me a little bit is weed control."
- 9 gnaw into; make resentful or angry wordnet
- 10 furnish with a grate wordnet
Adjective
- 1 Serving to gratify; agreeable. obsolete
"Coho or Coffee[…]however ingrate or insapory it seems at first, it becomes grate and delicious enough by custom."
- 2 Obsolete spelling of great. alt-of, obsolete
"c. 1815, Mary Woody, A true account of Nayomy Wise He promisd her a grate reward"
Antonyms
Example
"Dan entered the facility through a damaged metal grate."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "grate"?
Common synonyms include: ablate, abrade, abrase, afflict, aggravate, agonize.
How do you use "grate" in a sentence?
Dan entered the facility through a damaged metal grate.
How do you pronounce "grate"?
Pronounced /ɡɹeɪt/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English grate, from a Medieval Latin crāta, from a Latin word for a hurdle; or Italian grata, from Latin cratis.
Etymology 2
From Middle English graten, from Old French grater (“to scrape”) ( > French gratter), from Frankish *krattōn, from Proto-Germanic *krattōną. Cognate with Old High German krazzon ( > German kratzen (“to scrawl”) > Danish kradse), Icelandic krassa (“to scrawl”) and Danish kratte.
Etymology 3
From Latin grātus (“agreeable”).