groin
[groin]
- Anatomy. the fold or hollow on either side of the front of the body where the thigh joins the abdomen.
- the general region of this fold or hollow.
- Architecture. the curved line or edge formed by the intersection of two vaults.
- Also groyne. a small jetty extending from a shore to prevent beach erosion.
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- Architecture. to form with groins.
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Origin of groin
1350–1400; earlier grine, Middle English grinde; compare Old English grynde abyss, akin to grund bottom, ground1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for groin
Contemporary Examples
Merabet had already been immobilized by a bullet to the groin.
He closed his eyes, imagining the virgins, imagining away the pain in his head and groin.
One of the pictures showed Vice President Dick Cheney outside the Oval Office, hands cupped in front of his groin.
In another case, a female officer kicked a 37-year-old woman in the groin.
He scored big with Tommy, then was nearly deported for kicking an NYPD officer in the groin at the Fillmore.
Historical Examples
But as he was making for the ladder a bullet struck him in the groin and he fell.
The DownfallEmile Zola
It is often seen at the navel and sometimes in the groin as early as the second week.
The Mother and Her ChildWilliam S. Sadler
Then the Nipe came in low, at an angle, trying for the groin.
Anything You Can Do ...Gordon Randall Garrett
Pure air and cleanliness of groin and wound are to be obtained.
Special Report on Diseases of the HorseUnited States Department of Agriculture
His son John suffered from it in the groin and on the thigh; 2.
groin
- the depression or fold where the legs join the abdomenRelated adjective: inguinal
- euphemistic the genitals, esp the testicles
- a variant spelling (esp US) of groyne
- architect a curved arris formed where two intersecting vaults meet
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- (tr) architect to provide or construct with groins
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Word Origin
C15: perhaps from English grynde abyss; related to ground 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for groin
n.
1590s, earlier grine (1530s), from Middle English grynde "groin" (c.1400), originally "depression in the ground," from Old English grynde "abyss," perhaps also "depression, hollow," from Proto-Germanic *grundus (see ground). Altered 16c. by influence of loin or obsolete groin "snout." The architectural groin "edge formed by the intersection of two vaults" is from 1725.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
groin
(groin)- The crease or hollow at the junction of the inner part of each thigh with the trunk, together with the adjacent region and often including the external genitals.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.