Synonyms

grasping

American

[gras-ping, grahs-] / ˈgræs pɪŋ, ˈgrɑs- /

adjective

greedy; avaricious.

a sly, grasping man.

Synonyms:

venal, acquisitive, selfish, covetous
being used to grasp or tending to grasp; tenacious.

grasping British

/ ˈɡrɑːspɪŋ /

adjective

greedy; avaricious; rapacious

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

graspingly adverb
graspingness noun
overgrasping adjective
ungrasping adjective

Etymology

Origin of grasping

First recorded in 1540–50; grasp + -ing ²

Vocabulary lists containing grasping

Greedy

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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.

As demand for artificial intelligence skyrockets, AI companies have been grasping for solutions to flatten the steep cost curve of compute.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 18, 2026

It reminded me of my ordeal as a kid: the body screaming that something was wrong, and nobody grasping the root cause.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

Kudrow’s comedy and the film – a real doc, not a mockumentary – take different approaches to grasping the fear and possibility of AI’s impending takeover.

From Salon • Mar. 26, 2026

"Much of humanoid robotics today is focused on leg and hand motion, for activities like walking and grasping," Lipson said.

From Science Daily • Jan. 16, 2026

I did as he asked, grasping onto the wall to steady myself.

From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023