What does "grip" mean?
A hold or way of holding, particularly with the hand.
Grip
/ɡɹɪp/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A hold or way of holding, particularly with the hand.
- Grammar: grip is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: clasp, clutch, grasp, handle.
- Useful contrasts: ungrasped, aquaplane, aquaplanes.
- Usage evidence: Before the horse race begins, the jockeys grip the reins tightly to restrain the impatient horses.
How to use "grip"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "grip" 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 "grip" 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 "grip" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "grip" 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 "grip" is acting as noun, verb, slang 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 "clasp" 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 "grip", 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 hold or way of holding, particularly with the hand. countable, uncountable
"It's good to have a firm grip when shaking hands."
- 2 A small ditch or trench; a channel to carry off water or other liquid; a drain. dialectal
- 3 the act of grasping wordnet
- 4 Ability to resist slippage when pressed in contact with another object or surface. uncountable
"These tyres are worn out and don't have much grip."
- 5 A channel cut through a grass verge, especially for the purpose of draining water away from the highway.
Show 22 more definitions
- 6 a portable rectangular container for carrying clothes wordnet
- 7 A place to grip; a handle; the portion of a handle that the hand occupies. countable, uncountable
"Near-synonym: handgrip"
- 8 a flat wire hairpin whose prongs press tightly together; used to hold bobbed hair in place wordnet
- 9 A place to grip; a handle; the portion of a handle that the hand occupies.; Ellipsis of pistol grip. abbreviation, alt-of, broadly, countable, ellipsis, uncountable
- 10 the appendage to an object that is designed to be held in order to use or move it wordnet
- 11 A device, or a portion of one, that grasps or holds fast to something. countable, uncountable
"The unthreaded portion of the bolt's shank is called the grip."
- 12 an intellectual hold or understanding wordnet
- 13 A device, or a portion of one, that grasps or holds fast to something.; An apparatus attached to a car (e.g., cable car, funicular car, mine car) for clutching a traction cable. countable, uncountable
- 14 worker who moves the camera around while a film or television show is being made wordnet
- 15 Assistance; help; encouragement. countable, figuratively, uncountable
"He gave me a grip."
- 16 the friction between a body and the surface on which it moves (as between an automobile tire and the road) wordnet
- 17 Someone who is helpful, interesting, admirable, or inspiring. countable, figuratively, uncountable
"You're a real grip."
- 18 Control, power, or mastery over someone or something; a tenacious grasp; a holding fast. countable, figuratively, uncountable
"We need to get a grip on these spiralling costs."
- 19 Mental grasp. countable, figuratively, uncountable
"He's losing his grip – he's practically senile."
- 20 A medium-sized bag or holdall for one's belongings, made of soft leather, canvas etc., and carried in the hand by two handles, one either side of the opening. countable, uncountable
- 21 A visual component on a window etc. enabling it to be resized and/or moved by dragging with a mouse or finger. countable, uncountable
- 22 A person responsible for handling equipment on the set. countable, uncountable
- 23 As much as one can hold in a hand; a handful. countable, slang, uncountable
"I need to get a grip of nails for my project."
- 24 A lot of something. California, Southern, countable, slang, uncountable
"That is a grip of cheese."
- 25 A long time. California, Southern, countable, slang, uncountable
"I haven't seen you in a grip."
- 26 Archaic spelling of grippe (“influenza”). alt-of, archaic, countable, uncountable
"She has the grip."
- 27 A small travelling-bag or gripsack. countable, uncountable
"'I put my grips against the communicating door last night'."
Verb
- 1 To take hold (of), particularly with the hand. intransitive, transitive
"That suitcase is heavy, so grip the handle firmly."
- 2 To trench; to drain. dialectal
- 3 hold fast or firmly wordnet
- 4 To figuratively take hold of or grasp. transitive
"We need to grip this problem, not shut our eyes and hope it goes away."
- 5 to grip or seize, as in a wrestling match wordnet
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 Of an emotion or situation: to have a strong effect upon. transitive
"As the water level began to rise, I was gripped by panic."
- 7 to render motionless, as with a fixed stare or by arousing terror or awe wordnet
- 8 To firmly hold the attention of. transitive
"The movie gripped me from beginning to end."
Example
"Before the horse race begins, the jockeys grip the reins tightly to restrain the impatient horses."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "grip"?
Common synonyms include: clasp, clutch, grasp, handle, hold, abduct.
How do you use "grip" in a sentence?
Before the horse race begins, the jockeys grip the reins tightly to restrain the impatient horses.
How do you pronounce "grip"?
Pronounced /ɡɹɪp/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Verb from Middle English grippen, from Old English grippan, from a Proto-Germanic *gripjaną (compare Old High German gripfen); compare the related Old English grīpan, whence English gripe. See also grope, and the related Proto-Germanic *grīpaną. Noun from Middle English grippe, gripe, an amalgam of Old English gripe (“grasp, hold”) (cognate with German Griff) and Old English gripa (“handful”) (cognate with Swedish grepp).
Etymology 2
From Middle English grip, grippe, gryppe (“a ditch, drain”), from Old English grēp (“a furrow, burrow”) and grēpe (“a furrow, ditch, drain”), from Proto-Germanic *grōpiz (“a furrow, groove”). Cognate with Middle Dutch grippe, gruppe (“ditch, drain”), greppe, German Low German Gruppe (“ditch, drain”). Related also to Old English grōp (“a ditch, drain”). More at groop.