grit

[grit]

noun

1. abrasive particles or granules, as of sand or other small, coarse impurities found in the air, food, water, etc.

2. firmness of character; indomitable spirit; pluck.

   She has a reputation for grit and common sense.

   Synonyms: courage, fortitude, resolution

3. a coarse-grained siliceous rock, usually with sharp, angular grains.

4. British.,  gravel.

5. sand or other fine grainy particles eaten by fowl to aid in digestion.

verb (used with object)

gritted, gritting 

1. to cause to grind or grate together.

verb (used without object)

gritted, gritting 

1. to make a scratchy or slightly grating sound, as of sand being walked on; grate.

grit

¹

/ ɡrɪt /

noun

1. small hard particles of sand, earth, stone, etc

2. Also called: gritstone. any coarse sandstone that can be used as a grindstone or millstone

3. the texture or grain of stone

4. indomitable courage, toughness, or resolution

5. engineering an arbitrary measure of the size of abrasive particles used in a grinding wheel or other abrasive process

verb

1. to clench or grind together (two objects, esp the teeth)

2. to cover (a surface, such as icy roads) with grit

Grit

²

/ ɡrɪt /

noun

1. an informal word for Liberal

Other Word Forms

• gritless adjective
• gritter noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of grit¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English gret, griet, grit, Old English grēot; cognate with German Griess, Old Norse grjōt “pebble, boulder”; grits

Word History and Origins

Origin of grit¹

Old English grēot; related to Old Norse grjōt pebble, Old High German grioz; see _great , _groats , _gruel

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. grit one's teeth, to show tenseness, anger, or determination by or as if by clamping or grinding the teeth together.

Example Sentences

“I don’t know who you are,” I say through gritted teeth.

Read more on Literature

With the new clothes they could not afford now rumpled and covered with grit, the bedraggled Babushkinovs and their quiet but unusually alert governess arrived in Saint Petersburg at last.

Read more on Literature

“Of course they will join us,” her mistress said through gritted teeth.

Read more on Literature

These people have nothing, but they show up at the juke joint and you see the sweat and grit and grime on the clothes next to people who made a nice dress.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

He started the day on 29 and played with grit to complete the first half-century of a low-scoring contest.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• daring 
• fortitude 
• guts www.thesaurus.com
• moxie 
• perseverance 
• spirit 
• spunk 
• tenacity 
• toughness