grieve

verb \ ˈgrēv \

|Updated on: 7 Aug 2018

Examples: grieve in a Sentence

Definition of grieve

grieved; grieving

transitive verb

1 : to cause to suffer : distress

it grieves me to see him this way

2 : to feel or show grief over

grieving the death of her son

3 : to submit a formal grievance concerning

grieve a dismissal

intransitive verb

: to feel grief : sorrow

still grieving over their mother's death

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griever

noun

See grieve defined for English-language learners

See grieve defined for kids

Examples of grieve in a Sentence

It grieves me to see my brother struggling like this.
Her decision to live overseas grieved her mother.
People need time to grieve after the death of a family member.
The children are still grieving the death of their mother.

Recent Examples of grieve from the Web

In 2016, her first performance piece, An Occupation of Loss, debuted at the Park Avenue Armory, where professional mourners from 15 countries performed their grieving in 11 concrete towers.

— lane florsheim, WSJ, "Artist Taryn Simon Invites You to Take a Cold Water Plunge Inside a Museum," 11 July 2018
If so, at least half the country will be in abject misery, much the same way half the country grieved when President Obama won re-election in 2012.

— logan jenkins, sandiegouniontribune.com, "For true moderates, New Yorker tops Dem dream ticket," 9 July 2018
This made the grieving process much more complicated.

— Fox News, "'Always My Hero' by Renee Nickel," 4 July 2018
Here’s an artist grieving his mother who’s cast in a show about a guy who loses his mother.

— catherine bigelow, SFChronicle.com, "Stern Grove kicks out the fog and kicks off sizzling 81st summer season," 2 July 2018
The morning after the deadly plane crash, the grieving volleyball team gathered in a quiet corner in the Greektown Casino Hotel lobby.

— jeff seidel, Detroit Free Press, "Volleyball player finds light in darkness on court after deadly crash," 1 July 2018
Hours before the viewing, the line was congested with an overabundance of grieving fans that stretched from will call all the way out to the arena’s street entrance, standing peacefully.

— tony centeno, Billboard, "Lil Uzi Vert, PnB Rock, Family Gather to Mourn the Death Of XXXTentacion," 28 June 2018
Dolores never admits it, but her character grieves over the loss of her old innocence.

— josephine livingstone, The New Republic, "Puzzled by Westworld? Look to Shakespeare.," 26 June 2018
VITAS Bereavement Group Weekly: Bereavement groups are for people grieving the loss a loved one.

— mary lou cruz, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Davie area events July 18-28," 14 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'grieve.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of grieve

Middle English greven, from Anglo-French grever, from Latin gravare to burden, from gravis heavy, grave; akin to Greek barys heavy, Sanskrit guru

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

grieve Synonyms

Synonyms

agonize, anguish, bleed, hurt, mourn, sorrow, suffer;

Near Antonyms

beam, cheer, crow, delight, exult, glory, joy, laugh, ravish, rejoice, triumph;

assure, cheer, comfort, commiserate, console, reassure, solace, soothe, sympathize;

rack, torment, torture;

bemoan, bewail, deplore, lament, rue;

bawl, blubber, cry, groan, howl, keen, moan, sob, take on, wail, weep, yammer, yowl;

languish;

regret;

Phrases

eat one's heart out, tear one's hair;

GRIEVE Defined for English Language Learners

grieve

verb

Definition of grieve for English Language Learners

: to cause (someone) to feel sad or unhappy
: to feel or show grief or sadness

GRIEVE Defined for Kids

grieve

verb \ ˈgrēv \

Definition of grieve for Students

grieved; grieving

1 : to feel or show grief

a grieving widow

2 : to cause grief to

Her tears seemed to grieve the kind-hearted Munchkins …
—L. Frank Baum, The Wizard of Oz

Medical Dictionary

grieve

verb \ ˈgrēv \

medical Definition of grieve

grieved; grieving

transitive verb

: to feel or show grief over

grieving the death of her son

intransitive verb

: to feel grief

Each member of a family is likely to grieve differently, creating great potential for conflict.
—Eric Schlosser, The Atlantic Monthly, September 1997

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