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⇱ grave - WordReference.com Dictionary of English

grave

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UK:**UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈgreɪv/

US:USA pronunciation: IPAUSA pronunciation: IPA/greɪv/

US:USA pronunciation: respellingUSA pronunciation: respelling(grāv for 1, 3-4; for 6, Mus.grä′vā, It.gä′ve for 2, usu adj.grāv, also gräv)


Inflections of 'grave' (adj):
graver
adj comparative
gravest
adj superlative
Inflections of 'grave' (v): (⇒ conjugate)
graves
v 3rd person singular
graving
v pres p
graved
v past
graved
v past p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
grave1 /greɪv/USA pronunciation   n. [countable]
  1. a place in the ground in which to bury a dead body.
  2. any place where a dead body rests:The doomed ship's passengers went to a watery grave.
Idioms
  1. Idioms have one foot in the grave, to be so weak, sick, or old that death appears imminent.
  2. Idioms make someone turn over in his or her grave, to do something that would presumably have been very offensive, shocking, or insulting to a specified person who is now dead.


grave2 /greɪv/USA pronunciation   adj., grav•er, grav•est. 
  1. serious or solemn;
    sober:filled with grave thoughts.
  2. dangerous;
    threatening:a grave international crisis.
grave•ly, adv. 
grave•ness, n. [uncountable]

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
grave1  (grāv),USA pronunciation n. 
  1. an excavation made in the earth in which to bury a dead body.
  2. any place of interment;
    a tomb or sepulcher:a watery grave.
  3. any place that becomes the receptacle of what is dead, lost, or past:the grave of unfulfilled ambitions.
  4. death:O grave, where is thy victory?
  5. Idioms have one foot in the grave, to be so frail, sick, or old that death appears imminent:It was a shock to see my uncle looking as if he had one foot in the grave.
  6. Idioms make (one) turn or turn over in one's grave, to do something to which a specified dead person would have objected bitterly:This production ofHamlet is enough to make Shakespeare turn in his grave.
  • bef. 1000; Middle English; Old English græf; cognate with German Grab; see grave3
grave′less, adj. 
grave′like′, adj. 
grave′ward, grave′wards, adv., adj. 

grave2  (grāv; for 4, 6 also gräv),USA pronunciation adj., grav•er, grav•est for 1–3, 5, n. 
adj. 
  1. serious or solemn;
    sober:a grave person; grave thoughts.
  2. weighty, momentous, or important:grave responsibilities.
  3. threatening a seriously bad outcome or involving serious issues;
    critical:a grave situation; a grave illness.
  4. [Gram.]
    • unaccented.
    • spoken on a low or falling pitch.
    • noting or having a particular accent (ˋ) indicating originally a comparatively low pitch (as in French père), distinct syllabic value (as in English belovèd), etc. (opposed to acute).
  5. (of colors) dull;
    somber.

n. 
  1. the grave accent.
  • Latin gravis; akin to Greek barýs heavy
  • Middle French
  • 1535–45
grave′ly, adv. 
grave′ness, n. 
    1. sedate, staid, thoughtful. Grave, sober, solemn refer to the condition of being serious in demeanor or appearance. Grave indicates a weighty dignity, or the character, aspect, demeanor, speech, etc., of one conscious of heavy responsibilities or cares, or of threatening possibilities:The jury looked grave while studying the evidence.Sober (from its original sense of freedom from intoxication, and hence temperate, staid, sedate) has come to indicate absence of levity, gaiety, or mirth, and thus to be akin to serious and grave:as sober as a judge; a sober expression on one's face.Solemn implies an impressive seriousness and deep earnestness:The minister's voice was solemn as he announced the text.
    1. frivolous, gay.
grave3  (grāv),USA pronunciation v.t., graved, grav•en or graved, grav•ing. 
  1. to carve, sculpt, or engrave.
  2. to impress deeply:graven on the mind.
  • bef. 1000; Middle English graven, Old English grafan; cognate with German graben
grav′er, n. 

grave4  (grāv),USA pronunciation v.t., graved, grav•ing. [Naut.]
  1. Nautical, Naval Termsto clean and apply a protective composition of tar to (the bottom of a ship).
  • 1425–75; late Middle English; perh. akin to gravel

gra•ve5  (grä′vā; It. grä′ve),USA pronunciation [Music.]
adj. 
  1. Music and Danceslow;
    solemn.

adv. 
  1. Music and Danceslowly;
    solemnly.
  • Latin gravis heavy; see grave2
  • Italian grave
  • 1575–85

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
grave /ɡreɪv/ n
  1. a place for the burial of a corpse, esp beneath the ground and usually marked by a tombstone
    Related adjective(s): sepulchral
  2. something resembling a grave or resting place: the ship went to its grave
  3. the grave ⇒
  4. to make someone turn in their grave, to make someone turn over in their grave ⇒ to do something that would have shocked or distressed (someone now dead)
Etymology: Old English græf; related to Old Frisian gref, Old High German grab, Old Slavonic grobǔ; see grave3
grave /ɡreɪv/ adj
  1. serious and solemn: a grave look
  2. full of or suggesting danger: a grave situation
  3. important; crucial: grave matters of state
  4. (of colours) sober or dull
  5. /ɡrɑːv/ of or relating to an accent (`) over vowels, denoting a pronunciation with lower or falling musical pitch (as in ancient Greek), with a certain special quality (as in French), or in a manner that gives the vowel status as a syllable nucleus not usually possessed by it in that position (as in English agèd)
 n
  1. a grave accent
Etymology: 16th Century: from Old French, from Latin gravis; related to Greek barus heavy; see gravamenˈgravely adv ˈgraveness n
grave /ɡreɪv/ vb (graves, graving, graved, graved, graven) (transitive) archaic
  1. to cut, carve, sculpt, or engrave
  2. to fix firmly in the mind
Etymology: Old English grafan; related to Old Norse grafa, Old High German graban to dig
grave /ˈɡrɑːvɪ/ adj , adv
  1. to be performed in a solemn manner
Etymology: 17th Century: from Italian: heavy, from Latin gravis
'grave' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Collocations: the situation is [very, extremely] grave, things are looking grave (indeed), the consequences [are, could be, will be] grave, more...

🗣️Forum discussions with the word(s) "grave" in the title:

a 'scandal to the grave of his father'
A grave God-fearing man, a quiet sedate nature, the judge was solemn as ...
A question from the grave...
accidents, some of them grave, had not failed to occur. [Henry James]
all people's destinations are the same place, their GRAVE(S)
although <that> could be grave enough
And both possest one grave
And my sting and the grave.
any Kremlin satisfaction over the U.S. exit is qualified by grave concerns about events unfolding
as close as the grave
as silent as the grave
at the edge of the grave
at the grave
Beams refer to a grave
beyond the grave
Buried in grave
By the grave and stern decorum of the countenance it wore
carry to your grave certain habits
cemetery/grave-yard
chuck-farthen on the blessed grave-stones
cradle to grave
cruelty of the grave
dance on somebody's grave
deepest grave of matrimonial silence
demonstrates a grave physics lesson
didn't get his revenge from beyond the grave
dig his grave
dig one's own grave
Drug situations worldwide remain grave.
dug your own grave
more...

Look up "grave" at Merriam-Webster
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