grasp
Americanverb (used with object)
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grasps,
present (3rd person singular)
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grasped,
past participle, past
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grasping
present participle
verb (used without object)
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grasps,
present (3rd person singular)
-
grasped,
past participle, past
-
grasping
present participle
noun
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grasps
plural
-
the act of grasping or gripping, as with the hands or arms.
to make a grasp at something.
-
a hold or grip.
to have a firm grasp of a rope.
-
one's arms or hands, in embracing or gripping.
He took her in his grasp.
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one's power of seizing and holding; reach.
to have a thing within one's grasp.
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hold, possession, or mastery.
to wrest power from the grasp of a usurper.
- Synonyms:
- clutches
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mental hold or capacity; power to understand.
- Synonyms:
- comprehension, apprehension, understanding
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broad or thorough comprehension.
a good grasp of computer programming.
verb
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to grip (something) firmly with or as if with the hands
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to struggle, snatch, or grope (for)
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(tr) to understand, esp with effort
noun
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the act of grasping
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a grip or clasp, as of a hand
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the capacity to accomplish (esp in the phrase within one's grasp )
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total rule or possession
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understanding; comprehension
Synonym Usage
See catch. Grasp, reach refer to the power of seizing, either concretely or figuratively. Grasp suggests actually seizing and closing the hand upon something (or, figuratively, thoroughly comprehending something) and therefore refers to what is within one's possession or immediate possibility of possession: a good grasp of a problem; immense mental grasp. Reach suggests a stretching out of (usually) the hand to touch, strike, or, if possible, seize something; it therefore refers to a potentiality of possession that requires an effort. Figuratively, it implies perhaps a faint conception of something still too far beyond one to be definitely and clearly understood.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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graspernoun
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regraspverb (used with object)
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graspableadjective
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grasplessadjective
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ungraspableadjective
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ungraspedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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graspsimple
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graspssimple
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have graspedperfect
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has graspedperfect
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am graspingprogressive
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are graspingprogressive
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is graspingprogressive
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have been graspingperfect progressive
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has been graspingperfect progressive
Past
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graspedsimple
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had graspedperfect
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was graspingprogressive
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were graspingprogressive
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had been graspingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of grasp
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English graspen, grapsen; cognate with Low German grapsen; akin to Old English gegræppian “to seize” ( see grapple)
Explanation
To grasp is to get a hold of something, literally or figuratively. Grasp the grammar textbook with both hands and then read it to grasp the rules of the English language. It makes sense that the word grasp means understanding a concept since you are "getting a hold of an idea" just as you would grasp something tangible to hold. Grasp is good for when you're talking about comprehending the scale of something, or the full picture of a multi-faceted problem or idea. You might know that there is going to be a heat wave, but you may not grasp the idea of its relationship to global warming.
Vocabulary lists containing grasp
"Mending Wall," by Robert Frost
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Excerpt from "The Diary of Anne Frank"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Ord’s remarks follow an investor day, where it says it got a better grasp on “the strong resource upside” at Paladin’s PLS project.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
"It's a huge opportunity that we have to grasp... but we've got to do that in a responsible way," Hassabis said.
From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026
We all grasp what it means to be an American and how that is enshrined in the Constitution.
From Slate ● Aug. 31, 2026
Now, many of us are just one viral post away from its grasp.
From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026
No sooner had she spoken, than Delia slipped out of Papá’s grasp, and both Delia and Velia threw themselves on the invading sisters, who were knocked to the floor.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
A poolside interlude channels the tension of distance between two people who were once close: The woman grasps a book but seems primarily absorbed in melancholy; the man broods around her.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Although she grasps the issues that can arise with the product, she says, most of her life is pretty well documented anyway.
From Slate ● Feb. 12, 2026
Yet no character grasps what’s really going on.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 5, 2025
"Her friends come every few days. No one fully grasps the idea that she is now dead."
From BBC ● Nov. 10, 2025
At the end of it, a fingerlike protrusion wiggles and grasps.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
Emanuel grasped the potential of the diesel engine and secured its patent rights in Russia in 1898.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026
Kingsley looks at me, gauging if I’ve grasped the heartbreak of the moment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
"You talk about pressure but they grasped at it, they enjoyed it. They probably shocked the world with that performance."
From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026
If you’ve ever fancied a gondola ride through Venice’s famous canals, now might be the time—many Americans have already grasped the opportunity this summer.
From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026
Regiomontanus grasped that an astronomer does not have to travel in order to get two observation points that are, in effect, far apart.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
The Emmy Award-winning HBO comedy “Hacks” debuted nearly a decade after “Girls,” and it was still centered around a struggling creative grasping for whatever work she could find.
From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026
“Higher capacity is required for complex transactions like contracts, which require not just grasping the immediate exchange, but also comprehending finer details, consequences and the broader context.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026
Now, as growth flatlines, a desperate government is grasping for ideas to get the economy going again, including opening up retail across the whole week.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
Or "who is your team at the Cup?" without grasping it's the World Cup.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
A hand emerged, reaching and grasping into his living room.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
