gripping

adjective

grip·​ping ˈgri-piŋ 

: taking a powerful hold upon one's interest or feelings

a gripping thriller

Shabba Ranks has a gripping baritone voice that ranges from bedroom purr to locker-room-boast roar.

—Mark Coleman

grippingly adverb

a grippingly honest performance

Examples of gripping in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Sydney Sweeney has had quite the year, starring in both the boxer biopic Christy and the gripping thriller The Housemaid. —Meg Walters, InStyle, 11 Jan. 2026

This gripping page-turner — featuring a decades-old murder, a writer in town to tell the real story and an oncoming tempest — feels like it was ripped from the juiciest headlines. —Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 11 Jan. 2026

Ever gripping, wry, and immersive, this biography is for the many readers who love the specific cultural histories that reveal the grander truths of our time. —Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Jan. 2026

Contoro uses sensors and cameras to help guide its robotic arms, which have special gripping capabilities that enable them to suction boxes from the sides, rather than only the top. —Meghan Hall, Sourcing Journal, 30 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1896, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for gripping

• chipping
• clipping
• dipping
• dripping
• flipping
• nipping
• ripping
• shipping
• sipping
• skipping
• slipping
• snipping