grip

Etymology 1

From Middle English grippen, from Old English grippan, from a Proto-Germanic *gripjaną (compare Old High German gripfen); compare the related Old English grīpan, whence English gripe. See also grope, and the related Proto-Germanic *grīpaną.

verb

1. (transitive) To take hold of, particularly with the hand.
   That suitcase is heavy, so grip the handle firmly.
   The glue will begin to grip within five minutes.
   After a few slips, the tires gripped the pavement.
   When Timothy and Julia hurried up the staircase to the bedroom floor, where a considerable commotion was taking place, Tim took Barry Leach with him. He had him gripped firmly by the arm, since he felt it was not safe to let him loose, and he had no immediate idea what to do with him. 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 19, in The China Governess
2. (transitive) Of an emotion or situation: to have a strong effect upon.
3. (transitive) To firmly hold the attention of.
   The movie gripped me from beginning to end.

Etymology 2

From Middle English grippe, gripe, an amalgam of Old English gripe (“grasp, hold”) (cognate with German Griff) and Old English gripa (“handful”) (cognate with Swedish grepp).

noun

1. A hold or way of holding, particularly with the hand.
   It's good to have a firm grip when shaking hands.
   The ball will move differently depending on the grip used when throwing it.
2. A handle or other place to grip.
   the grip of a sword
   There are several good grips on the northern face of this rock.
3. (figurative) Assistance; help or encouragement.
   He gave me a grip.
4. (figurative) A helpful, interesting, admirable, or inspiring person.
   You're a real grip.
5. (figurative) Control, power or mastery over someone or something; a tenacious grasp; a holding fast.
   in the grip of a blackmailer
   to strengthen one's grip on a company
   Dotcom mania was slow in coming to higher education, but now it has the venerable industry firmly in its grip. Since the launch early last year of Udacity and Coursera, two Silicon Valley start-ups offering free education through MOOCs, massive open online courses, the ivory towers of academia have been shaken to their foundations. 2013-07-20, “The attack of the MOOCs”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845
   The current president toppled his uncle in a violent coup in 1979, before sentencing him to death by firing squad. Since then, he has consolidated his grip over the country's industries and is accused of diverting tax money into his personal accounts. 2016-06-22, Max Bearak, “The world’s longest-serving president just appointed his son as VP”, in The Washington Post
   Instead England produced something that felt a little transgressive in this most controlled of stages, tightening their grip in a bruising first half, before freewheeling downhill in the second with their feet up on the handlebars. 2022-11-21, Barney Ronay, “Iran’s brave and powerful gesture is a small wonder from a World Cup of woe”, in The Guardian
6. (slang) As much as one can hold in a hand; a handful.
   I need to get a grip of nails for my project.
7. (computing, graphical user interface) A visual component on a window etc. enabling it to be resized and/or moved.
8. (film production) A person responsible for handling equipment on the set.
9. A channel cut through a grass verge (especially for the purpose of draining water away from the highway).
10. (chiefly Southern California slang) A lot of something.
    That is a grip of cheese.
11. (chiefly Southern California slang) A long time.
    I haven't seen you in a grip.
12. Archaic spelling of grippe (“influenza”).
    She has the grip.
    It so happened that, during a stretch of inclement weather in the fall, Lester was seized with a mild form of grip. When he felt the first symptoms he thought that his indisposition would be a matter of short duration, and tried to overcome it by taking a hot bath and a liberal dose of quinine. But the infection was stronger than he counted on; by morning he was flat on his back, with a severe fever and a splitting headache. 1911, Theodore Dreiser, chapter XXXII, in Jennie Gerhardt
13. (archaic except rail transport) A small travelling-bag or gripsack.
    'I put my grips against the communicating door last night'. 1934, Agatha Christie, chapter 4, in Murder on the Orient Express, London: HarperCollins, published 2017, page 35
14. An apparatus attached to a car for clutching a traction cable.
15. A device for grasping or holding fast to something.

Etymology 3

From Middle English grip, grippe, gryppe (“a ditch, drain”), from Old English grēp (“a furrow, burrow”) and grēpe (“a furrow, ditch, drain”), from Proto-Germanic *grōpiz (“a furrow, groove”). Cognate with Middle Dutch grippe, gruppe (“ditch, drain”), greppe, German Low German Gruppe (“ditch, drain”). Related also to Old English grōp (“a ditch, drain”). More at groop.

noun

1. (dialectal) A small ditch or trench; a channel to carry off water or other liquid; a drain.

verb

1. (dialectal) To trench; to drain.