What does "graze" mean?
The act of grazing; a scratching or injuring lightly on passing.
Graze
/ɡɹeɪz/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The act of grazing; a scratching or injuring lightly on passing.
- Grammar: graze is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: ablate, abrade, abrase, abrasion.
- Useful contrasts: avoid, bashes, browse.
- Usage evidence: The sheep graze the grass in the field.
How to use "graze"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "graze" 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 "graze" 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 "graze" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "graze" 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 "graze" is acting as 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 "graze", 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 The act of grazing; a scratching or injuring lightly on passing.
- 2 the act of grazing wordnet
- 3 A light abrasion; a slight scratch.
- 4 a superficial abrasion wordnet
- 5 The act of animals feeding from pasture.
"If it be sundown, when the herds are returning from their daily graze in the long grass of the jungle, clouds of dust will be marking their track along every approach to the village […]"
Verb
- 1 To feed or supply (cattle, sheep, etc.) with grass; to furnish pasture for. transitive
"He hath a Houſe and Barn in repair, a Field or two to graze his Cows, with a Garden and Orchard."
- 2 eat lightly, try different dishes wordnet
- 3 To feed on; to eat (growing herbage); to eat grass from (a pasture) ambitransitive
"Cattle graze in the meadows."
- 4 scrape gently wordnet
- 5 To tend (cattle, etc.) while grazing. transitive
"Shylock: When Jacob grazed his uncle Laban's sheep"
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 feed as in a meadow or pasture wordnet
- 7 To eat small amounts of food periodically throughout the day, rather than at fixed mealtimes, often not in response to hunger. intransitive
"Furthermore, people who take the time to sit down to proper meals find their food more satisfying than people who graze throughout the day. If you skip meals, you will inevitably end up snacking on more high-fat high-sugar foods."
- 8 let feed in a field or pasture or meadow wordnet
- 9 To shoplift by consuming food or drink items before reaching the checkout.
"Grazing refers to customers who consume food items before paying for them, for example, a customer bags one and a half pounds of grapes in the produce department, eats some as she continues her shopping […]"
- 10 break the skin (of a body part) by scraping wordnet
- 11 To rub or touch lightly the surface of (a thing) in passing. transitive
"the bullet grazed the wall"
- 12 To cause a slight wound to; to scratch. transitive
"to graze one's knee"
- 13 To yield grass for grazing. intransitive
"The sewers must be kept so as the water may not stay too long in the spring; for then the ground continueth the wet, whereby it will never graze to purpose that year."
Example
"The sheep graze the grass in the field."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "graze"?
Common synonyms include: ablate, abrade, abrase, abrasion, abrasions, attouchement.
How do you use "graze" in a sentence?
The sheep graze the grass in the field.
How do you pronounce "graze"?
Pronounced /ɡɹeɪz/.
Etymology
From Old English grasian (“to feed on grass”), from græs (“grass”).