grief

[greef]

noun

1. keen mental suffering or distress over affliction or loss; sharp sorrow; painful regret.

   Synonyms: moroseness, melancholy, sadness, misery, woe, heartache, anguish
   Antonyms: joy

2. a cause or occasion of keen distress or sorrow.

verb (used with or without object)

griefed, griefing 

1. Digital Technology.

   1. (in an online video game) to behave in an unsportsmanlike way or take pleasure in antagonizing (other players).

      I reported the jerk who griefed me yesterday—I hope they ban his account.

   2. to exploit a glitch or execute an online prank that ruins a website or other online experience for (users).

      Posting flashing content to an epilepsy site is taking griefing to a malicious and dangerous extreme.

grief

/ ɡriːf /

noun

1. deep or intense sorrow or distress, esp at the death of someone

2. something that causes keen distress or suffering

3. informal,  trouble or annoyance

   people were giving me grief for leaving ten minutes early

4. informal,  to end unsuccessfully or disastrously

5. See tune

Other Word Forms

• griefless adjective
• grieflessness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of grief¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English gref, grief, from Anglo-French gref; grieve

Word History and Origins

Origin of grief¹

C13: from Anglo-French gref, from grever to _grieve ¹

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. come to grief, to suffer disappointment, misfortune, or other trouble; fail.

   Their marriage came to grief after only two years.

2. good grief, (used as an exclamation of dismay, surprise, or relief ).

   Good grief, it's started to rain again!

see come to grief; good grief.

Synonym Study

See sorrow.

Example Sentences

Music may be permitted to speak not of specifics but the essence of grief, a collective cherishing of existence.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The man’s mind, we know from the poem, is consumed with grief for his lost love, Lenore, and terror that her ghost has come seeking entrance.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

What starts as a campus novel leaps over decades to offer a more expansive view of life that spans the emotional gamut from elation to grief.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

She’s said in interviews that the album was inspired in part by grief and loss—how the most difficult part of growing older is losing people close to you.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

“There’s even a term for it—delayed grief—and this itself is very, very hurtful.”

Read more on Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• agony 
• anguish 
• bereavement 
• despair 
• discomfort 
• gloom 
• heartache 
• heartbreak 
• melancholy 
• misery 
• mourning 
• pain 
• regret 
• remorse 
• sadness 
• sorrow 
• trouble 
• unhappiness www.thesaurus.com
• woe 
• worry 

When To Use

What does grief mean?

Grief is mental or emotional suffering or distress caused by loss or regret. It’s especially used to refer to the feeling of sorrow and loss from the death of a loved one.People who are overwhelmed by grief are often described as grief-stricken. This kind of grief is most commonly associated with death, but the word can also be used in the context of other situations involving loss, such as a divorce or the loss of a job.The related verb grieve means to mourn—to feel or express intense grief, especially due to a death or loss.The word grief is also used informally to mean trouble or annoyance, as in Please don’t give your mother any grief when she gets home—her day has been hard enough already. Grief is used in the phrase good grief, which is typically used to express alarm or dismay.Grief is also used in the context of online gaming as a slang term that means something similar to the verb sense of troll—to take pleasure in antagonizing others.Example: I can’t imagine the amount of grief you feel from the loss of your mother.