gripe

1 of 2

verb

griped; griping

intransitive verb

1
: to complain with grumbling
Students griped about having too much homework.
2
: to experience gripes

transitive verb

1
a
: irritate, vex
griped by the new regulations
2
: to cause pinching and spasmodic pain in the bowels of
3
archaic : seize, grasp
griper noun

gripe

2 of 2

noun

1
: grievance, complaint
Her main gripe was his utter lack of ambition.
2
: a pinching spasmodic intestinal pain
usually used in plural
3
archaic : clutch, grasp
broadly : control, mastery

Examples of gripe in a Sentence

Verb All of the workers were griping about the new regulations. The students griped that they had too much homework. Noun I would rather not listen to gripes about your latest disasters in the dating game.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Liam Gallagher is once again griping about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame — this time about the class of nominees. Jessica Wang, EW.com, 27 Feb. 2024 In it, Cedillo and De León not only gripe about the lack of Latino political power in Los Angeles but also openly express fear that a new generation of Latinos, who don’t subscribe to the identity politics of the past, is ready to take them on. Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 27 Feb. 2024 Still others gripe that the Army should never have closed the post or, at the very least, should’ve held onto the land. Sam McManis, Sacramento Bee, 31 Jan. 2024 After their regular-season meeting this year — a 20-17 Bills victory in KC, when the Chiefs had a late go-ahead touchdown touchdown nullified because of an offensive offside penalty — Mahomes used his brief postgame handshake with Allen to gripe about the play. Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 19 Jan. 2024 Diners are getting fed up, eating less fast food and griping on social media that their go-to cheap meals aren’t so cheap anymore. Christine Romans, NBC News, 7 Feb. 2024 In late January, lawmakers griped that Taylor Swift’s world tour skipped the Chinese city. Nicholas Gordon, Fortune Asia, 5 Feb. 2024 Christie had been griping for weeks that Haley had not come out swinging against Trump. USA TODAY, 22 Jan. 2024 And while consumers may gripe over the increase, the owners of Halal Plates are facing a surge in prices, too. Emmett Lindner, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2024
Noun
Within hours of the casting announcement, journalists uncovered racist, homophobic and transphobic comments Gillis made on his podcast the previous year, including a slur for Chinese people and lengthy gripes about the same. Seth Simons, Los Angeles Times, 22 Feb. 2024 Manchin’s other gripe is the perennial problem of unilateral delays of effective dates and deadlines in tax guidance, which in this case takes the form of a transition rule that wasn’t in the statute. Marie Sapirie, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2024 His real gripe, however, was that the way the study was conducted gave crappies caught in 30 feet of water no real chance to survive. Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 15 Feb. 2024 The book seems to confirm that Musk’s personal gripes played a key role in his $44 billion acquisition of the social media platform. Maxwell Zeff / Gizmodo, Quartz, 12 Feb. 2024 So this time, is Schaffer saying David has nothing left to gripe about? Jackie Strause, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Feb. 2024 My middle schooler has previously complained that kids in her class go to the bathroom way too frequently and make TikTok videos (among her many other gripes about being in seventh grade). Melissa Willets, Parents, 24 Jan. 2024 That many lawmakers have chosen to focus primarily on scrutinizing platforms (rather than pursuing more prudent reforms) is unsurprising today because practically everybody has some gripe with Big Tech. Maureen Flatley, National Review, 25 Jan. 2024 And, oh, the varied gripes people have about the right way to make a movie musical. Scott Hocker, theweek, 21 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gripe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb and Noun

Middle English, from Old English grīpan; akin to Old High German grīfan to grasp, Lithuanian griebti

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 3

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Time Traveler
The first known use of gripe was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near gripe

Cite this Entry

“Gripe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gripe. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

gripe

1 of 2 verb
griped; griping
1
archaic : to seize firmly : grip
2
b
: irritate sense 1, vex
laziness gripes our teacher
3
: to cause or experience spasms of pain in the intestines
4
griper noun

gripe

2 of 2 noun
1
2
3
: a spasm of pain in the intestines

Medical Definition

gripe

1 of 2 verb
griped; griping

transitive verb

: to cause pinching and spasmodic pain in the bowels of

intransitive verb

: to experience gripes

gripe

2 of 2 noun
: a pinching spasmodic intestinal pain
usually used in plural

More from Merriam-Webster on gripe

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!