graveness definition |Dictionary.com

grave

4 dictionary results for: graveness

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

grave2

[greyv; for 4, 6 also grahv] Pronunciation Key adjective, grav·er, grav·est for 1–3, 5, noun

–adjective

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.

Grammar.

a.	unaccented.

b.	spoken on a low or falling pitch.

c.	noting or having a particular accent (`) indicating originally a comparatively low pitch (as in French père), distinct syllabic value (as in English belovèd), etc. (opposed to acute).

5.	(of colors) dull; somber.

–noun

6.	the grave accent.

[Origin: 1535–45; < MF < L gravis; akin to Gk barýs heavy

]

—Related forms

gravely, adverb

graveness, noun

—Synonyms 1. sedate, staid, thoughtful. Grave, sober, solemn refer to the condition of being serious in demeanor or appearance. Grave indicates a weighty dignity, or the character, aspect, demeanor, speech, etc., of one conscious of heavy responsibilities or cares, or of threatening possibilities: The jury looked grave while studying the evidence. Sober (from its original sense of freedom from intoxication, and hence temperate, staid, sedate) has come to indicate absence of levity, gaiety, or mirth, and thus to be akin to serious and grave: as sober as a judge; a sober expression on one's face. Solemn implies an impressive seriousness and deep earnestness: The minister's voice was solemn as he announced the text.

—Antonyms 1. frivolous, gay.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

grave² (grāv) Pronunciation Key
adj. grav·er, grav·est

Requiring serious thought; momentous: a grave decision in a time of crisis.
Fraught with danger or harm: a grave wound.
Dignified and somber in conduct or character: a grave procession. See Synonyms at serious.
Somber or dark in hue.
also (gräv) Linguistics
1. Written with or modified by the mark ( ` ), as the è in Sèvres.
2. Of or referring to a phonetic feature that distinguishes sounds produced at the periphery of the vocal tract, as in labial and velar consonants and back vowels.

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 g^werə-¹ in Indo-European roots.]

grave'ly adv., grave'ness n.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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