Grip

Pronunciation

• enPR: grÄ­p, IPA: /É¡rɪp/
• Rhymes: -ɪp

From Old English grippan, from a Proto-Germanic *gripjaną (compare Old High German gripfen); cf. the related Old English grīpan, whence English gripe. See also grope.

Full definition of grip

Verb

1. (transitive) To take hold of, particularly with the hand.
• 1963, Margery Allingham, The China Governess Chapter 19, When Timothy and Julia hurried up the staircase to the bedroom floor, where a considerable commotion was taking place, Tim took Barry Leach with him. He had him gripped firmly by the arm, since he felt it was not safe to let him loose, and he had no immediate idea what to do with him.
2. That suitcase is heavy, so grip the handle firmly.
   The glue will begin to grip within five minutes.
   After a few slips, the tires gripped the pavement.
3. (transitive) To help or assist, particularly in an emotional sense.
• 1898, J. Meade Falkner, Moonfleet Chapter 4By and by fumes of brandy began to fill the air, and climb to where I lay, overcoming the mouldy smell of decayed wood and the dampness of the green walls. It may have been that these fumes mounted to my head, and gave me courage not my own, but so it was that I lost something of the stifling fear that had gripped me, and could listen with more ease to what was going forward
4. He grips me.
5. (intransitive) To do something with another that makes you happy/gives you relief.
   Let’s grip (get a coffee, hang, take a break, see a movie, etc.)
6. To trench; to drain.

An amalgam of Old English gripe ("grasp, hold") (cognate with German Griff) and Old English gripa ("handful") (cognate with Swedish grepp).

Noun

1. A hold or way of holding, particularly with the hand.
   It's good to have a firm grip when shaking hands.
   The ball will move differently depending on the grip used when throwing it.
2. A handle or other place to grip.
   the grip of a sword
   There are several good grips on the northern face of this rock.
3. film production A person responsible for handling equipment on the set.
4. A channel cut through a grass verge (especially for the purpose of draining water away from the highway).
5. (chiefly Southern California slang) A lot of something.
   That is a grip of cheese.
6. Archaic spelling of grippe: Influenza, flu.
   She has the grip.
7. (archaic) A small travelling-bag.
8. Assistance; help or encouragement.
   He gave me a grip.
9. A helpful, interesting, admirable, or inspiring person.
   You're a real grip.
10. (slang) As much as one can hold in a hand; a handful.
    I need to get a grip of nails for my project.
11. (figurative) A tenacious grasp; a holding fast.
• 2013-07-20, The attack of the MOOCs, Dotcom mania was slow in coming to higher education, but now it has the venerable industry firmly in its grip. Since the launch early last year of Udacity and Coursera, two Silicon Valley start-ups offering free education through MOOCs, massive open online courses, the ivory towers of academia have been shaken to their foundations.
12. in the grip of a blackmailer
13. A device for grasping or holding fast to something.

Related terms

• come to grips
• get to grips with
• key grip
• get a grip
• gripper

From Middle English grip, grippe, gryppe ("a ditch, drain"), from Old English grēp ("a furrow, burrow") and Old English 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.

Alternative forms

• gripe

Noun

1. (dialectal) A small ditch or trench; a channel to carry off water or other liquid; a drain.

Derived terms

• gripple

Latin grypus, gryphus.

Noun

1. (obsolete) The griffin.

Anagrams

• IGRP, prig