[greyv] Pronunciation Key | 1. | an excavation made in the earth in which to bury a dead body. |
| 2. | any place of interment; a tomb or sepulcher: a watery grave. |
| 3. | any place that becomes the receptacle of what is dead, lost, or past: the grave of unfulfilled ambitions. |
| 4. | death: O grave, where is thy victory? |
| 5. | have one foot in the grave, to be so frail, sick, or old that death appears imminent: It was a shock to see my uncle looking as if he had one foot in the grave. |
| 6. | make (one) turn or turn over in one's grave, to do something to which a specified dead person would have objected bitterly: This production of Hamlet is enough to make Shakespeare turn in his grave. |
—Related forms
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
[greyv; for 4, 6 also grahv] Pronunciation Key adjective, grav·er, grav·est for 1–3, 5, noun | 1. | serious or solemn; sober: a grave person; grave thoughts. |
| 2. | weighty, momentous, or important: grave responsibilities. |
| 3. | threatening a seriously bad outcome or involving serious issues; critical: a grave situation; a grave illness. |
| 4. | Grammar.
|
| 5. | (of colors) dull; somber. |
| 6. | the grave accent. |
] —Related forms
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
[greyv] Pronunciation Key | 1. | to carve, sculpt, or engrave. |
| 2. | to impress deeply: graven on the mind. |
] —Related forms
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
[greyv] Pronunciation Key | to clean and apply a protective composition of tar to (the bottom of a ship). |
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
[grah-vey; It. grah-ve] Pronunciation Key Music. | 1. | slow; solemn. |
| 2. | slowly; solemnly. |
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
| grave 1
(grāv) Pronunciation Key
n.
[Middle English, from Old English græf; see ghrebh-2 in Indo-European roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
| grave 2
(grāv) Pronunciation Key
adj. grav·er, grav·est
n. Linguistics also (gräv) A mark ( ` ) indicating a pronounced e for the sake of meter in the usually nonsyllabic ending -ed in English poetry. [French, from Old French, from Latin gravis; see gwerə-1 in Indo-European roots.] grave'ly adv., grave'ness n. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
| grave 3
(grāv) Pronunciation Key
tr.v. graved, grav·en (grā'vən) or graved, grav·ing, graves
[Middle English graven, from Old English grafan; see ghrebh-2 in Indo-European roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
| grave 4
(grāv) Pronunciation Key
tr.v. graved, grav·ing, graves To clean and coat (the bottom of a wooden ship) with pitch. [Middle English graven.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
| gra·ve 5
(grä'vā) Pronunciation Key
adv. & adj. Music In a slow and solemn manner. Used chiefly as a direction. [Italian, from Latin gravis, heavy; see grave2.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
grave (n.)
grave (adj.)
grave (v.)
| grave | |
adjective | |
| 1. | dignified and somber in manner or character and committed to keeping promises; "a grave God-fearing man"; "a quiet sedate nature"; "as sober as a judge"; "a solemn promise"; "the judge was solemn as he pronounced sentence" |
| 2. | causing fear or anxiety by threatening great harm; "a dangerous operation"; "a grave situation"; "a grave illness"; "grievous bodily harm"; "a serious wound"; "a serious turn of events"; "a severe case of pneumonia"; "a life-threatening disease" [syn: dangerous] |
| 3. | of great gravity or crucial import; requiring serious thought; "grave responsibilities"; "faced a grave decision in a time of crisis"; "a grievous fault"; "heavy matters of state"; "the weighty matters to be discussed at the peace conference" |
noun | |
| 1. | death of a person; "he went to his grave without forgiving me"; "from cradle to grave" |
| 2. | a place for the burial of a corpse (especially beneath the ground and marked by a tombstone); "he put flowers on his mother's grave" |
| 3. | a mark (') placed above a vowel to indicate pronunciation [syn: grave accent] |
verb | |
| 1. | shape (a material like stone or wood) by whittling away at it; "She is sculpting the block of marble into an image of her husband" [syn: sculpt] |
| 2. | carve, cut, or etch into a material or surface; "engrave a pen"; "engraved the trophy cupt with the winner's"; "the lovers scratched their names into the bark of the tree" [syn: scratch] |
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
grave (grāv)
adj.
Serious or dangerous, as a symptom or disease.
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Grave
Grave\, v. t. (Naut.) To clean, as a vessel's bottom, of barnacles, grass, etc., and pay it over with pitch; -- so called because graves or greaves was formerly used for this purpose.Grave
Grave\, a. [Compar. Graver (gr[=a]v"[~e]r); superl. Gravest.] [F., fr. L. gravis heavy; cf. It. & Sp. grave heavy, grave. See Grief.]1. Of great weight; heavy; ponderous. [Obs.] His shield grave and great. --Chapman. 2. Of importance; momentous; weighty; influential; sedate; serious; -- said of character, relations, etc.; as, grave deportment, character, influence, etc. Most potent, grave, and reverend seigniors. --Shak. A grave and prudent law, full of moral equity. --Milton. 3. Not light or gay; solemn; sober; plain; as, a grave color; a grave face. 4. (Mus.) (a) Not acute or sharp; low; deep; -- said of sound; as, a grave note or key. The thicker the cord or string, the more grave is the note or tone. --Moore (Encyc. of Music). (b) Slow and solemn in movement. Grave accent. (Pron.) See the Note under Accent, n., 2. Syn: Solemn; sober; serious; sage; staid; demure; thoughtful; sedate; weighty; momentous; important. Usage: Grave, Sober, Serious, Solemn. Sober supposes the absence of all exhilaration of spirits, and is opposed to gay or flighty; as, sober thought. Serious implies considerateness or reflection, and is opposed to jocose or sportive; as, serious and important concerns. Grave denotes a state of mind, appearance, etc., which results from the pressure of weighty interests, and is opposed to hilarity of feeling or vivacity of manner; as, a qrave remark; qrave attire. Solemn is applied to a case in which gravity is carried to its highest point; as, a solemn admonition; a solemn promise.Grave
Grave\, v. t. [imp. Graved (gr[=a]vd); p. p. Graven (gr[=a]v"'n) or Graved; p. pr. & vb. n. Graving.] [AS. grafan to dig, grave, engrave; akin to OFries. greva, D. graven, G. graben, OHG. & Goth. graban, Dan. grabe, Sw. gr[aum]fva, Icel. grafa, but prob. not to Gr. gra`fein to write, E. graphic. Cf. Grave, n., Grove, n.]1. To dig. [Obs.] Chaucer. He hath graven and digged up a pit. --Ps. vii. 16 (Book of Common Prayer). 2. To carve or cut, as letters or figures, on some hard substance; to engrave. Thou shalt take two onyx stones, and grave on them the names of the children of Israel. --Ex. xxviii. 9. 3. To carve out or give shape to, by cutting with a chisel; to sculpture; as, to grave an image. With gold men may the hearte grave. --Chaucer. 4. To impress deeply (on the mind); to fix indelibly. O! may they graven in thy heart remain. --Prior. 5. To entomb; to bury. [Obs.] --Chaucer. Lie full low, graved in the hollow ground. --Shak.Grave
Grave\, v. i. To write or delineate on hard substances, by means of incised lines; to practice engraving.Grave
Grave\, n. [AS. gr?f, fr. grafan to dig; akin to D. & OS. graf, G. grab, Icel. gr["o]f, Russ. grob' grave, coffin. See Grave to carve.] An excavation in the earth as a place of burial; also, any place of interment; a tomb; a sepulcher. Hence: Death; destruction. He bad lain in the grave four days. --John xi. 17. Grave wax, adipocere.Grave
Among the ancient Hebrews graves were outside of cities in the open field (Luke 7:12; John 11:30). Kings (1 Kings 2:10) and prophets (1 Sam. 25:1) were generally buried within cities. Graves were generally grottoes or caves, natural or hewn out in rocks (Isa. 22:16; Matt. 27:60). There were family cemeteries (Gen. 47:29; 50:5; 2 Sam. 19:37). Public burial-places were assigned to the poor (Jer. 26:23; 2 Kings 23:6). Graves were usually closed with stones, which were whitewashed, to warn strangers against contact with them (Matt. 23:27), which caused ceremonial pollution (Num. 19:16). There were no graves in Jerusalem except those of the kings, and according to tradition that of the prophetess Huldah.
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