gripe: Meaning and Definition of

gripe

Pronunciation: (grīp), [key]
— v., n. griped, grip•ing,
—v.i.
  1. to complain naggingly or constantly; grumble.
  2. to suffer pain in the bowels.
  3. (of a sailing vessel) to tend to come into the wind; to be ardent.
—v.t.
  1. to seize and hold firmly; grip; grasp; clutch.
  2. to produce pain in (the bowels) as if by constriction.
  3. to distress or oppress.
  4. to annoy or irritate: His tone of voice gripes me.
  5. to grasp or clutch, as a miser.
  6. to secure (a lifeboat) to a deck or against a pudding boom on davits.
—n.
  1. the act of gripping, grasping, or clutching.
  2. a nagging complaint.
  3. a firm hold; clutch.
  4. a grasp; hold; control.
  5. something that grips or clutches; a claw or grip.
    1. a lashing or chain by which a boat is secured to a deck or in position on davits.
    2. Also calledgripe&prim; piece&sec;.a curved timber connecting the stem or cutwater of a wooden hull with the keel.
    3. the exterior angle or curve formed by this piece; forefoot.
    4. the forward end of the dished keel of a metal hull.
  6. a handle, hilt, etc.
  7. Usually,an intermittent spasmodic pain in the bowels.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
See also: