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

Should my friend file a grievance with the State Bar of Texas?

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026

Days later, Attiah, who was represented by the Washington-Baltimore News Guild and Democracy Defenders Fund, filed a grievance saying she was wrongfully terminated.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

Despite raising concerns and using the employer's grievance process, her agreed working pattern was not permanently restored.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 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

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

President Emmanuel Macron told reporters during a visit to the Paris Motor Show that the pupils' grievances would take time to address and urged restraint from protesters.

From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026

Paul, meanwhile, was in a period of uncharacteristic autobiographical directness in his lyric-writing, documenting his grievances with his actor girlfriend Jane Asher while residing in her family’s London home.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

Since late September, pupils have barred the entrances to their schools, complaining of teacher absences, overloaded timetables, dilapidated classrooms and buildings ill-adapted to rising temperatures, among other grievances.

From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026

In an interview, he said Williams had upset some other council members by airing grievances on social media.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

My assumption was that he would hear what Barack and I had to say and then instantly validate all my grievances.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

Related Words

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