groin

American  

[groin] / grɔɪn /

noun

• groins
  plural

1. Anatomy. the fold or hollow on either side of the front of the body where the thigh joins the abdomen.

2. the general region of this fold or hollow.

3. Architecture. the curved line or edge formed by the intersection of two vaults.

4. Also groyne a small jetty extending from a shore to prevent beach erosion.

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verb (used with object)

1. Architecture. to form with groins.

groin British  

/ ɡrɔɪn /

noun

1. the depression or fold where the legs join the abdomen

2. euphemistic the genitals, esp the testicles

3. a variant spelling (esp US) of groyne

4. architect a curved arris formed where two intersecting vaults meet

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verb

1. (tr) architect to provide or construct with groins

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• ungroined
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• groins
  plural

Etymology

Origin of groin

1350–1400; earlier grine, Middle English grinde; compare Old English grynde “abyss,” akin to grund “bottom, ground ¹ ”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

groin groins

But he also "ripped his groin" in United's FA Cup tie at Shrewsbury in February 2016.

From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026

Feeling under the weather, the 45-year-old social worker noticed what she believed was a boil in her upper groin.

From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2026

Both address bad valves without open-heart surgery, typically by going in through the femoral artery in the groin.

From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026

Last year, Hernández played in just one rehab game returning from a strained groin.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 30, 2026

They were convinced that the bullet lay somewhere in the muscles of the lower abdomen near the groin.

From "Ambushed!" by Gail Jarrow

“Yeah, it for sure felt like that. I think my knee bothering me helped my groins too,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 22, 2024

NOTES: DBs Lonnie Johnson and Elijah Molden both did not practice due to injured groins.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 7, 2022

The Army Corps of Engineers, which began the Rockaway resiliency project in 2020, is installing stone structures called groins — similar to rock jetties — into the ocean to fortify sand along the beach.

From New York Times ● May 29, 2022

Human intervention in beach processes, like jetties and groins, have negative consequences that need to be mitigated.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2017

It begins over the neck, chest, and groins as numerous reddish points not larger than a pin's head, closely crowded together, but with skin of normal color between.

From A System of Practical Medicine by American Authors, Vol. I Volume 1: Pathology and General Diseases by Various