grievance

American  

[gree-vuhns] / ˈgri vəns /

noun

• grievances
  plural

1. a wrong considered as grounds for complaint, or something believed to cause distress.

   Inequitable taxation is the chief grievance.

   Synonyms:

   distress, injury, hurt, injustice, affront

2. a complaint, as against an unjust or unfair act.

   to have a grievance against someone.

3. a feeling or belief that one has been wronged, oppressed, or is the victim of an injustice; resentment.

   The conflict on campus was described as the result of racial grievance or victim culture, depending on who reported it.

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grievance British  

/ ˈɡriːvəns /

noun

1. a real or imaginary wrong causing resentment and regarded as grounds for complaint

2. a feeling of resentment or injustice at having been unfairly treated

3. obsolete affliction or hardship

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grievance Idioms  

1. see air one's grievances.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• pregrievance
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• grievances
  plural

Etymology

Origin of grievance

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English greva(u)nce, greva(u)ns “injury, offense, annoyance,” from Old French grevance “harm, injury, trouble, misfortune”; see origin at grieve, -ance

Explanation

A grievance is a complaint. It can be formal, as when an employee files a grievance because of unsafe working conditions, or more of an emotional matter, like a grievance against an old friend who betrayed you. A grievance is a complaint that may or may not be justified. Often a grievance is a complaint about something that breaks a rule or a law, like a grievance filed against a person who builds a fence in his front yard in a town that does not allow that. If that same neighbor plants flowers he knows make you sneeze uncontrollably, you might be unhappy about that, but this is the kind of grievance you can work out among yourselves.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

grievance grievances

“We feel abandoned,” she said, echoing a widely shared grievance among Ceutíes, as the locals call themselves.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026

What happens when your boss is also the HR department, the grievance handler and the person deciding whether you get paid?

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

That if you are loud enough, and your engine is big enough, and your grievance is hot enough, that is the same thing as being a man.

From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2026

Detainees in his dormitory submitted a grievance about commissary prices, Parada Calderon said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026

A sergeant who was unaware of all of this approached me with a copy of the inmate’s grievance letter in the mess hall at lunchtime that same day.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover

Montgomerie argued Farage and Reform were at their best when they were more positive rather than "inward looking" and focused on "grievances."

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

And he is admirably fair-minded in assessing both Willing’s achievements and the grievances of his critics.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

As we talked, a young man approached and told Lopez he’d seen her airing her grievances on TV news.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026

But when you look at the document, it’s actually just a list of grievances against King George III. I think of the declaration as a breakup letter.

From Slate ● Jul. 3, 2026

“I vill now accept petitions and reqvests. If dere are any grievances, I shall hear dem.”

From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz

Related Words

• grief
• hardship
• injustice
• objection
• outrage
• resentment
• sorrow
• unhappiness