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

But, they all have their own careers and may not want the all-consuming grind that running “SNL” entails.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026

After 35 years in the corporate grind, we’ll have substantial retirement savings; we’ve always saved carefully; and we have no debt or mortgage.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026

The grind continued, and it started to feel like another day on the trail.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

People stop by Amadou Gaye's shack at the market in the western town of Sukuta to use his small electric mill to grind millet for cooking porridge or the local steamed grain dish called chere.

From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026

“I don’t know who—” My words grind to a halt.

From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer

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

Markets remain worried about a potential pullback in consumer spending as the conflict grinds on and retail energy prices continue to climb.

From MarketWatch ● May 15, 2026

Of the many “firsts” in Mike Donio’s life—the first time he met his wife, the first steps taken by his daughter—there’s one that really grinds his gears.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 3, 2026

“It was,” I say as a skateboarder grinds the curb.

From "The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman" by Gennifer Choldenko

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

Glasnow had returned from his early-season shoulder problem, but grinded through six starts from July 29 to Aug. 30 with an ERA above 4.00.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2025

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

From BBC ● Jan. 1, 2025

“As the war has grinded on, justice is beginning to seem more like cruelty,” Stewart said on Monday's segment.

From Salon ● Apr. 9, 2024

I have grinded over jagged rocks and navigated narrow and twisty paths.

From "A Rover's Story" by Jasmine Warga

Space Command must drill with these weapons under contested conditions, including cyberattacks, electronic interference and attacks on supporting ground infrastructure.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

But when she watched Michael Sheen's BBC documentary revealing the lagoon's history as a dumping ground of cancer-causing chemicals known as PCBs, Natalie was shocked.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

“When first responders arrived, there were two people hanging from the apartment window and three on the ground, one of which I presume was Mr. Jackson,” White said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026

Furthermore, not all of last year’s richest Americans gained ground over the past 12 months.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026

There we joined the occupants of other barracks—some 35,000 at that time—stretching out of sight in the pale glow of the street lamps, feet growing numb on the cold cinder ground.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

An ex-college passer grinding the tape in his living room had the answer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

He acknowledged a scenario where earnings fall from peak levels but “the stock keeps grinding higher.”

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026

Touring is so expensive and grinding for all but the biggest artists these days.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026

But teeth grinding can also cause chronic pain, which can have a huge impact on your daily life.

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026

“I hate it! Nothing but grinding or skylarking. And I don’t like the way fellows do either, in this country.”

From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott

Related Words

• grate
• pulverize
• reduce
• scrape