grates

present tense third-person singular of grate
1
2
as in scratches
to pass roughly and noisily over or against a surface the sled grated along the bare pavement

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

3
as in grits
to press or strike against or together so as to make a scraping sound he grated the pieces of metal together

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of grates Nothing grates quite like those slick pharmaceutical ads blaring across the TV, promising quick fixes while soft-pedaling potential side effects. Alex Ward, Boston Herald, 15 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grates
Verb
  • Ask yourself what annoys you specifically about that behavior, Davis says.
    NPR, NPR, 28 Oct. 2025
  • There are days when my running annoys my wife, my children, or my colleagues.
    Nicholas Thompson, The Atlantic, 23 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • There are certainly some top-notch barbecue restaurants that made the cut, but the Michelin selection barely scratches the surface of the South’s long, proud barbecue tradition.
    Robert F. Moss, Southern Living, 5 Nov. 2025
  • The affidavit said that the victim suffered minor injuries, including a bruise on her left eye and scratches on the right side of her neck.
    Rachel DeSantis, PEOPLE, 29 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • What about him specifically bothers you especially in terms of poisoning the youth?
    Jayson Buford, Rolling Stone, 3 Nov. 2025
  • Really, the accuracy is the one thing that bothers me with him.
    Mike Sando, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • The video shows the pup lounging around in various positions in a home setting, from asleep on the floor and over a blanket to playing with a dog toy and lying on the floor with her legs in the air as a hand rubs her belly.
    Soo Kim, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Oct. 2025
  • For a deeper dive into DeRose-Broeckert’s findings about how deer perceive scrapes and rubs, head over to NDA.
    Natalie Krebs, Outdoor Life, 16 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Nobody catches it for week, until someone scrapes customer addresses and posts them online.
    Daniel Fusch, Ascend Agency, 28 Oct. 2025
  • Injuries can occur when the person scrapes over the rocks.
    Anna Skinner, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • But Chelsea won’t have it, shutting the whole thing down in a way that clearly irritates her.
    Anne Victoria Clark, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025
  • The group exhausts and irritates opposing pitchers.
    Andy McCullough, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • At bottom, that’s the thing that grinds my gears.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 21 Oct. 2025
  • The Luxe Café automatically grinds beans to the appropriate size and volume for your drink, and has a hands-free frothing system for creating hot and cold foam.
    Mark Marino, Bon Appetit Magazine, 4 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Both can reduce debris or items that attract the boxelder bugs.
    Nafeesah Allen, Better Homes & Gardens, 23 Oct. 2025
  • Chinch bugs overwinter in moist, deep thatch.
    Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 17 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Grates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grates. Accessed 16 Nov. 2025.

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