grit

1 of 2

noun

1
a
b
: a hard sharp granule (as of sand)
also : material (as many abrasives) composed of such granules
2
: any of several sandstones
3
a
: the structure of a stone that adapts it to grinding
b
: the size of abrasive particles usually expressed as their mesh
4
: firmness of mind or spirit : unyielding courage in the face of hardship or danger
managed to survive by his grit and guile
5
capitalized : a Liberal in Canadian politics

grit

2 of 2

verb

gritted; gritting

intransitive verb

: to give forth a grating sound
dry snow gritting beneath our feet

transitive verb

1
: to cause (one's teeth) to grind or grate
gritted his teeth and faced the challenge
2
: to cover or spread with grit
especially : to smooth (a material, such as marble) with a coarse abrasive

Examples of grit in a Sentence

Noun He shook out his shoes to remove the small rocks and grit. Through resourcefulness and grit, the pioneers survived the winter. Verb the crash victim gritted his teeth as a way of coping with the pain
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
And pop culture depictions of grit certainly don’t help. Alex Zaragoza, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2024 Dishes include shrimp and grits, sweet potato waffles and more. Chyna Blackmon, Charlotte Observer, 27 Feb. 2024 Valentine's Day dining offers include 16-oz bone-in New York strip ($27.99, comes with choice of 2 regular sides), BBQ shrimp appetizer ($10.99), shrimp & grits ($19.99), grilled salmon ($23.99, two sides), and chocolate cake ($9.99). Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 23 Feb. 2024 Throughout his life, Day, 34, has developed the grit required to remain true to a name like that. The Indianapolis Star, 22 Feb. 2024 This cheesy bake tops grits with creamy half-and-half and bacon custard. Lisa Cericola, Southern Living, 21 Feb. 2024 An earthenware bowl held half chia pudding and half blue corn grits sprinkled with coconut-pecan granola, corn flour, blue agave syrup and a mix of blueberries and raspberries. The Arizona Republic, 19 Feb. 2024 Those songs emphasize Rodrigo’s yen to rock, which is earnest and studied and bolstered by an impressively roaring band that lent her a soupçon of grit. Jon Caramanica, New York Times, 24 Feb. 2024 For Hanna, these women also serve as exemplars of the grit and determination of refugees around the world. Andrew Leon Hanna, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024
Verb
Despite apparently suffering a minor injury to his previously uninjured leg, Ware gritted his way through a 23-point, 10-rebound performance that set the course for Indiana’s win. Zach Osterman, The Indianapolis Star, 1 Feb. 2024 While Egwene's got her eye on the finish line, gritting through the crucible of her daily grind, Nynaeve's far less patient… and that's amplified by the fact that since last season's finale, she's been completely unable to tap into the Source. Alex Raiman, EW.com, 1 Sep. 2023 Sprinkle a thin, lightweight layer of soil or grit on top. Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 8 Feb. 2024 This blush comes in three different shades—dynamic, a deep plum shade; perseverance, a bright red; and grit, a vibrant pink. Moriah Mason, Southern Living, 28 Nov. 2023 For four decades, patient savers able to grit their teeth through bubbles, crashes and geopolitical upheaval won the money game. Spencer Jakab, WSJ, 25 Oct. 2023 The Aces starters, who have years of experience playing together, were grabbing rebounds, gritting through contact, slipping through screens, disrupting opposing drives, dancing around defenders in intricate patterns. Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 15 Oct. 2023 This ammonia-free formula is designed to be tough on stubborn grime and grit, yet gentle enough to use on delicate stone, tile, and laminate. Kelsey Mulvey, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Nov. 2023 We are told to push through, grit our teeth, accept it. Nell Frizzell, Vogue, 9 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'grit.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English greet, grete, going back to Old English grēot, going back to Germanic *greuta- "broken bits of stone, sand, gravel," (whence also Old Saxon griot "sand, gravel," Middle Dutch griet "coarse sand, grit," Old High German grioz, Old Icelandic grjót "gravel, pebbles"), noun derivative of *greutan- "to grind, crush" (whence Old High German gegrozan "coarse-grained," past participle of a presumed strong verb griozan "to crush"), going back to dialectal Indo-European *ghreu̯dH-e/o-, whence, from zero grade, Lithuanian grū́džiu/grū́du, grū́sti "to crush, pulverize"; and from a nominal derivative with o-grade Russian grúda "heap, pile," Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian grȕda "lump, clod"

Note: The form grit (rarely grite) is first attested from the late sixteenth century, alongside the forms greet, greete and griet, which by the nineteenth century are considered dialectal. While the latter clearly continue the Middle and Old English etymon, the source of grit is uncertain, as Middle English ẹ̄ should not result in short i. It has been suggested, as by the Oxford English Dictionary, first edition, that short i has been taken from the vowel of grit in grits. — The Germanic verb is unattested outside of Old High German. The Indo-European base *ghreu̯dH-e/o- has no solidly comparable progeny outside of Germanic and Balto-Slavic. Compare also grits, groats, grout entry 1.

Verb

derivative of grit entry 1, with some senses probably in part phonesthemic and in part influenced by grate entry 3

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1762, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of grit was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near grit

Cite this Entry

“Grit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grit. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

grit

1 of 2 noun
1
a
: a small hard sharp particle (as of sand)
b
: material (as an abrasive) composed of grits
2
: firmness of mind or spirit : unyielding courage
gritty
ˈgrit-ē
adjective

grit

2 of 2 verb
gritted; gritting
: to grind or cause to grind : grate
grit one's teeth

Legal Definition

GRIT

abbreviation
grantor retained income trust

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