grind

American  

[grahynd] / graɪnd /

verb (used with object)

• grinds,
  present (3rd person singular)
• ground,
  past participle,  past
• grinded,
  past
• grinding
  present participle

1. to wear, smooth, or sharpen by abrasion or friction; whet.

   to grind a lens.

2. to reduce to fine particles, as by pounding or crushing; bray, triturate, or pulverize.

   Synonyms:

   pound, comminute, powder, crush

3. to oppress, torment, or crush.

   to grind minimum-wage employees.

   Synonyms:

   maltreat, persecute, afflict, plague

4. to rub harshly or gratingly; grate together; grit.

   to grind one's teeth.

   Synonyms:

   abrade

5. to operate by turning a crank.

   to grind a hand organ.

6. to produce by crushing or abrasion.

   to grind flour.

7. Slang. to annoy; irritate; irk.

   It really grinds me when he's late.

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verb (used without object)

• grinds,
  present (3rd person singular)
• ground,
  past participle,  past
• grinded,
  past
• grinding
  present participle

1. to perform the operation of reducing to fine particles.

2. to rub harshly; grate.

3. to be or become ground.

4. to be polished or sharpened by friction.

5. Informal. to work or study laboriously (often followed byaway ).

   He was grinding away at his algebra.

6. Digital Technology. (in a video game) to perform a monotonous task repeatedly in order to advance a character to a higher level or rank.

   You have to grind for hours before you can embark on the main story mission.

7. Slang. (in a dance) to rotate the hips in a suggestive manner.

noun

• grinds
  plural

1. the act of grinding.

2. a grinding sound.

3. a grade of particle fineness into which a substance is ground.

   The coffee is available in various grinds for different coffee makers.

4. laborious, usually uninteresting work.

   Copying all the footnotes was a grind.

5. Informal. an excessively diligent student.

6. Slang. a dance movement in which the hips are rotated in a suggestive or erotic manner.

verb phrase

1. grind out

   1. to produce in a routine or mechanical way.

      to grind out magazine stories.

   2. to extinguish by rubbing the lighted end against a hard surface.

      to grind out a cigarette.

grind British  

/ ɡraɪnd /

verb

1. to reduce or be reduced to small particles by pounding or abrading

   to grind corn

   to grind flour

2. (tr) to smooth, sharpen, or polish by friction or abrasion

   to grind a knife

3. to scrape or grate together (two things, esp the teeth) with a harsh rasping sound or (of such objects) to be scraped together

4. to speak or say (something) in a rough voice

5. to hold down; oppress; tyrannize

6. (tr) to operate (a machine) by turning a handle

7. to produce in a routine or uninspired manner

   he ground out his weekly article for the paper

8. to continue to play in a dull or insipid manner

   the band only ground out old tunes all evening

9. to instil (facts, information, etc) by persistent effort

   they ground into the recruits the need for vigilance

10. informal (intr) to study or work laboriously

11. (intr) to dance erotically by rotating the pelvis (esp in the phrase bump and grind )

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noun

1. informal laborious or routine work or study

2. slang a person, esp a student, who works excessively hard

3. a specific grade of pulverization, as of coffee beans

   coarse grind

4. slang the act of sexual intercourse

5. a dance movement involving an erotic rotation of the pelvis

6. the act or sound of grinding

grind Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing grind

• ax to grind
• mills of the gods grind slowly

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• grindability
  noun
• regrind
  verb
• grindable
  adjective
• ungrindable
  adjective
• grindingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• grinds
  plural

Participles

• grinding
  present
• ground
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• grind
  simple
• grinds
  simple
• have ground
  perfect
• has ground
  perfect
• am grinding
  progressive
• are grinding
  progressive
• is grinding
  progressive
• have been grinding
  perfect progressive
• has been grinding
  perfect progressive

Past

• grinded
  simple
• ground
  simple
• had ground
  perfect
• was grinding
  progressive
• were grinding
  progressive
• had been grinding
  perfect progressive

Future

• will grind
  simple
• will have ground
  perfect
• will be grinding
  progressive
• will have been grinding
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of grind

First recorded before 950; Middle English grinden, Old English grindan; akin to Gothic grinda-, Latin frendere “to gnash the teeth; complain”

Explanation

If you like to grind your own coffee beans, it means you prefer to buy whole beans, put them in an electric grinder, and pulverize them into tiny bits before you brew your coffee. When you grind something, you mill or crush it into smaller pieces, the way you grind pepper or grind a grain into flour. Two things that rub up against each other also grind together, which is what your teeth do if you grind them in your sleep. Informally, grind also means boring, tedious work, often in the sense of "grind away" or "the daily grind." This sense of grind was invented in the 1800s as college slang.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

grind grinds grinded ground grinding

"When you're in this situation and you've got a guide dog and you can't do anything, it does make certain things grind to a halt."

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

Power cuts mean that water pumps grind to a halt.

From Barron's ● Aug. 4, 2026

You’re not in this purchase to grind out a small gain with a minor move — you want a big gain on a monster move in VIX.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026

“We work very hard with the spices to grind them in very coarse, medium or fine sizes,” he explained.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026

Fortune, which had favored me, even to the height of marrying a prince, now turned her wheel to grind me down.

From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein

The strikes earlier this month reflect the difficult position that Arab states find themselves in as the war grinds on.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026

They may even be detained for months or years while their case grinds through immigration court.

From Slate ● Jun. 23, 2026

When he’s done speaking, Paul looks back down at the table, grinds his palms together.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 8, 2026

Countries and companies are working through alternatives to Hormuz as the conflict grinds on.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 1, 2026

It’s late when the garage door finally grinds open.

From "The Fourteenth Goldfish" by Jennifer L. Holm

Hiring had almost grinded to a halt by the end of summer, alarming the Fed enough to push the central bank to start cutting interest rates again.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 1, 2025

Then suddenly, their offenses grinded to a halt.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 18, 2025

"I'm just pleased I grinded it out and got the win."

From BBC ● Jan. 1, 2025

The back-and-forth between McGovern and Republican House members grinded proceedings to a halt for about an hour.

From Salon ● May 23, 2024

Grover touched a tiny scratch, and it became a Greek A. The mark of Daedalus glowed blue, and the stone wall grinded open.

From "The Battle of the Labyrinth" by Rick Riordan

“Firefighters on the ground are experiencing some extremely steep and rugged terrain mixed with hot, dry temperatures and winds that are pretty variable,” Cal Fire Battalian Chief Josh Silveira said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

Even though his house was essentially just a hole in the ground, Chris said, it was still looted.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

This change allowed for more efficient locomotion, reducing drag as the body moved across the ground.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 10, 2026

The midfield lacked power and ball-winning ability in 2024-25, and it is imperative that new arrivals Florentino Luis and Sasa Lukic – both experienced at the highest level – hit the ground running.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

The wind made the sail go furiously: horse and knight were flung to the ground far afield.

From "Adventures of Don Quixote" by Argentina Palacios

It was, of course, trading Jared Verse for Garrett that got Donald’s wheels grinding, McVay said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026

"Don't be rude. Otherwise, this interview will come to a grinding halt, Sarah," Joyce snapped back.

From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026

Sufferers have described symptoms such as hearing a low hum, clicks, squeals and "grinding metal" while others reported intense pressure on the skull, dizziness and nausea.

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026

Since Russia’s 2022 invasion, the conflict has settled into a grinding war of attrition, with both sides deeply dug in.

From Slate ● Jul. 10, 2026

Crunch, crunch, crunch she went, grinding the maize into flour.

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer

Related Words

• grate
• pulverize
• reduce
• scrape