grope

verb

\ ˈgrōp

groped; groping

Definition of grope

(Entry 1 of 2)

intransitive verb

1 : to feel about blindly or uncertainly in search grope for the light switch

2 : to look for something blindly or uncertainly grope for the right words

3 : to feel one's way groped along the dark passage

transitive verb

1 : feel up claims that her boss tried to grope her

2 : to find (one's way) by groping

grope

noun

plural gropes

Definition of grope (Entry 2 of 2)

: an act of groping made a grope for the light switch And what are these clumsy, embarrassing, fumbling encounters if they are not passes, beery gropes in the dark?— Nick Hornby

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Synonyms for grope

Synonyms: Verb

feel, fish, fumble, scrabble

Examples of grope in a Sentence

Verb

I groped for the light switch. She groped around in her purse, looking for her comb. We groped along the dark passage. She claims that her boss tried to grope her.

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

The details are murky—and the Belleville police department could not locate records related to the incident—but Broshears was arrested for groping a 17-year-old boy. — Eric Markowitz, Newsweek, "The Most Dangerous Gay Man in America Fought Violence With Violence," 25 Jan. 2018 The lawsuit arose from reports by investigative website Mediapart and radio station France Inter based on accounts from 14 women who alleged he had groped, sexted and otherwise harassed them. — Sylvie Corbet, The Seattle Times, "6 French women on trial for alleging lawmaker harassed them," 4 Feb. 2019 An Assembly investigation did not corroborate allegations that Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia drunkenly groped a former legislative staff member, according to both the Bell Gardens Democrat and the man who accused her. — Alexei Koseff, sacbee, "Sexual harassment allegation against Cristina Garcia not substantiated by Assembly | The Sacramento Bee," 17 May 2018 In April 2017, Martinez is said to have groped her breasts, prompting Venegas to report him yet again. — Justin Phillips, San Francisco Chronicle, "Kitchen worker files sexual harassment lawsuit against Napa’s Bistro Don Giovanni," 8 May 2018 Mexican journalist Mariana Zacarias has told Paris Match about being groped, kissed and grabbed in the first two weeks of the tournament. — Siobhan Morrin, Time, "Female Sports Reporters Are Blowing the Whistle on Sexist Behavior at the World Cup," 3 July 2018 Last year, Crews tweeted his own story of being groped by Hollywood agent Adam Venit at a party in 2016 in front of his wife, adding a new voice to the movement, which had mostly been focused on women. — Shannon Carlin, refinery29.com, "Terry Crews Details The Importance Of #MeToo In Powerful Speech To Senate," 26 June 2018 The Svenska Dagbladet paper reported last month that among those groped by Arnault was Swedish Crown Princess Victoria 12 years ago. — Bloomberg.com, "Nobel Literature Prize Will Not Be Awarded This Year," 4 May 2018 Among those speaking out is Jennifer Gunter, a San Francisco obstetrician-gynecologist, who recently wrote a blog post about being groped in 2014 by a prominent colleague at a medical conference, even naming him. — Christina Jewett, chicagotribune.com, "The #MeToo movement hits the medical field," 25 Mar. 2018

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