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grief definition

grief (grēf)

noun

  1. intense emotional suffering caused by loss, disaster, misfortune, etc.; acute sorrow; deep sadness
  2. a cause or the subject of such suffering
  3. Informal
    1. irritation or frustration, esp. from accidents, mishaps, etc. the griefs of a computer operator
    2. trouble; difficulty; problem enough grief for one day
    3. a cause of any of these

Etymology: ME gref < OFr, sorrow, grief < grever: see grieve

grief Idioms

come to grief

to fail or be ruined

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

idioms grief idiom

medical grief definition - medical

grief Synonyms

grief

n.

  1. Mental distress

    sorrow, sadness, regret, melancholy, vexation, mourning, misery, trouble, anguish, bereavement, painful regret, distress over loss, depression, despondency, pain, worry, harassment, anxiety, woe, heartache, repining, lamentation, dole, dolor, malaise, disquiet, discomfort, smart, mortification, affliction, gloom, unhappiness, wretchedness, infelicity, desolation, despair, agony, torture, purgatory.

    Antonyms happiness*, exhilaration*, pleasure. *

  2. The cause of distress

    affliction, tribulation, vexation; see difficulty 2.

come to grief

be ruined, be unsuccessful, be harmed, have trouble, suffer; see also fail 1.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

grief Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • assuage: This powerlessness translated itself into elaborate funeral rituals to assuage the grief of those left behind.

Preposition: at

  • loss: I am in a country stricken with grief at the violent loss of thousands of its people.

Converse of subject

  • overcome: Plainly, some of those who had been close to the Princess were overcome by grief.

Preposition: over

  • death: Such public displays of grief over the deaths of strangers say much about how fragmented and atomised society has become.

Adjective modifier

  • unresolved: Many also suffer from unresolved grief at the loss of the support they received from the professional who has abused them.

Modifies a noun

  • reaction: Children will also be affected by the grief reaction of their surviving parent, which rarely may lead to neglect.

Possessives

  • father: These events begin to unlock Nicky and her father's grief.

Preposition: for

  • loss: Actually, this helps people including myself in dealing with our grief for the loss of Princess Diana.
grief usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

grief quotes

I loved thee once; I'll love no moreö Thine be the grief as is the blame; Thou art not what thou wast before, What reason I should be the same?

-Aytoun, Sir Robert

They bore within their breasts the grief That fame can never healö The deep, unutterable woe

-Aytoun,William Edmonstoune

There is no passion in the mind of man so weak, but it mates and mastersthefearofdeath. And therefore death is no such terrible enemy, when a man hath so many attendants about him that can win the combat of him. Revenge triumphs over death; love slights it; honour aspireth to it; grief flieth to it.

-Bacon, Francis,Viscount St Albans

grief quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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"grief." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/grief>

APA Style

grief. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/grief

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