| Share

Dictionary

grave

Pronunciation: (grāv), [key]
—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. 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. 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 of Hamlet is enough to make Shakespeare turn in his grave.

grave

Pronunciation: (grāv; for 4, 6 also gräv), [key]
—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.
a. unaccented.
b. spoken on a low or falling pitch.
c. noting or having a particular accent (`) 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.
the grave accent.

grave

Pronunciation: (grāv), [key]
—v.t., graved, grav•en or graved, grav•ing.
1. to carve, sculpt, or engrave.
2. to impress deeply: graven on the mind.