as in scraping
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Dissimilar Words
1
as in rubbing
to make smooth by friction
after they are ground and polished, these stones can be used for jewelry
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in gritting
to press or strike against or together so as to make a scraping sound
everyone in the car winced when the driver ground the gears trying to shift into second
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in sharpening
to make sharp or sharper
better grind down that ax before you even think about trying to cut down that tree
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in polishing
to make smooth or glossy usually by repeatedly applying surface pressure
used the finest polishing paper he could to grind down the facets of the diamond before dusting it with a soft cloth
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
6
as in crushing
to reduce to fine particles
grind whole coffee beans if you want the freshest coffee
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of grinding
Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 7 June 2026
Nine crucial years of expansion and solidification of the pernicious institution went by, speeding the nation’s road toward a grinding war.
—Literary Hub, 3 June 2026
After more than four years, Russia’s full-scale invasion has morphed into a grinding war of attrition where soldiers are being killed en masse, financial losses are piling up and Kyiv has started to liberate more land than Moscow has seized.
—Helen Regan, CNN Money, 2 June 2026
But these Knicks didn’t reach the Finals by grinding every possession or waiting for Jalen Brunson to save them in critical moments.
—C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 1 June 2026
Matcha Matcha is a type of green tea made by grinding whole tea leaves into a fine powder.
—Merve Ceylan, Health, 1 June 2026
There’s no sound more evocative of summer than that of an old-school ice cream maker’s motor droning its monotonous naaaaaaaa with the backbeat of gas station ice and rock salt grinding and shifting against the spinning ice cream cannister.
—Josh Miller, Southern Living, 31 May 2026
Four years of international sanctions have hampered Moscow’s ability to procure machinery, technology and research from Europe, while the grinding war in Ukraine has taxed key industries and pushed the country toward a potential financial crisis.
—Emma Burrows, Fortune, 30 May 2026
Facing a grinding stalemate and war fatigue at home, Putin is preparing a major escalation of missile strikes on Kyiv to restore his image of control and momentum.
—Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2026
Verb
If the story of the past two years was one of slow, grinding forward progress for Russia,the story of this year is very different.
—Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 7 June 2026
Nine crucial years of expansion and solidification of the pernicious institution went by, speeding the nation’s road toward a grinding war.
—Literary Hub, 3 June 2026
After more than four years, Russia’s full-scale invasion has morphed into a grinding war of attrition where soldiers are being killed en masse, financial losses are piling up and Kyiv has started to liberate more land than Moscow has seized.
—Helen Regan, CNN Money, 2 June 2026
But these Knicks didn’t reach the Finals by grinding every possession or waiting for Jalen Brunson to save them in critical moments.
—C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 1 June 2026
Matcha Matcha is a type of green tea made by grinding whole tea leaves into a fine powder.
—Merve Ceylan, Health, 1 June 2026
There’s no sound more evocative of summer than that of an old-school ice cream maker’s motor droning its monotonous naaaaaaaa with the backbeat of gas station ice and rock salt grinding and shifting against the spinning ice cream cannister.
—Josh Miller, Southern Living, 31 May 2026
Four years of international sanctions have hampered Moscow’s ability to procure machinery, technology and research from Europe, while the grinding war in Ukraine has taxed key industries and pushed the country toward a potential financial crisis.
—Emma Burrows, Fortune, 30 May 2026
Facing a grinding stalemate and war fatigue at home, Putin is preparing a major escalation of missile strikes on Kyiv to restore his image of control and momentum.
—Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grinding
Adjective
-
Recently, internet infrastructure provider Cloudflare likened the platform to North Korean hackers for bypassing anti-scraping protections on websites.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
7 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Carefully remove any visible tentacles with tweezers or a gloved hand and avoid rubbing the skin.—
Jessica Safavimehr,
Southern Living,
3 June 2026
-
Sources told the outlet that the pair had a smiley chat, while White's date was also seen rubbing his leg.—
Christina Perrier,
InStyle,
1 June 2026
Verb
-
The director, a graduate of the AFI conservatory, spent two summers growing up gritting his teeth at an all-boys sleepaway sports camp.—
Mia Galuppo,
HollywoodReporter,
22 Dec. 2025
-
Bob Donnan / Imagn Images North Carolina and head coach Bill Belichick picked up a second straight ACC win on Saturday, gritting to a 20-15 victory over Stanford in Chapel Hill.—
Justin Williams,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
Verb
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And while a $3,000 mattress or a 22-step wind-down routine may look like the answer to your sleepless nights, the real answer is likely to be far more accessible, like keeping a consistent sleep-wake schedule and sharpening your sleep hygiene.—
Sharon Brandwein,
USA Today,
2 June 2026
-
Before sharpening, always disconnect the spark plug and safely remove the blade using gloves and a wood block.—
Helena Madden,
Martha Stewart,
2 June 2026
Verb
-
Another highlight of my visit was experiencing Bastien's Manicure, an in-spa collaboration with nail-care specialists Bastien Gonzalez, which pairs meticulous cuticle work and a thorough massage with a natural nail-polishing technique that eliminates the need for nail polish entirely.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
27 May 2026
-
There’s the difficulty of sintering and polishing the ceramic, and then there’s maintaining the purity of the look.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
27 May 2026
Verb
-
One of those 17 was a bullpen game — with Ober’s injury, the Twins currently have four starters on the roster — and in one game, the Twins had to press Woods Richardson into duty after scratching Rojas an hour before the game.—
Betsy Helfand,
Twin Cities,
7 June 2026
-
Equity versus debt Corporate bonds have been the hyperscalers’ main source of financing for the AI buildout so far, so the switch to equity has some analysts scratching their heads.—
Tobias Burns,
CNBC,
2 June 2026
Verb
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That legacy includes crushing both hyperinflation and the Maoist insurgents of the Shining Path, who bathed Peru in blood in the 1980s and 1990s.—
Simeon Tegel,
NPR,
6 June 2026
-
Less than two minutes later, Messi lost the ball near the halfway line and a France move ended with a sumptuous, crushing Mbappe volley hitting the back of the net.—
Will Jeanes,
New York Times,
5 June 2026
Adjective
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Additionally, try not to use any harsh cleaners or a really abrasive solution that may damage the surface.—
Daley Quinn,
Southern Living,
5 June 2026
-
There’s a one-note quality to the film’s comedy that grows steadily, even deliberately, more abrasive over two hours, but the sad, brash, gradually shrinking bigness of the personalities at its center holds your attention.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
4 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Grinding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grinding. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
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