grind

grind¹ [graınd] v past tense and past participle ground [graund]

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1¦(into small pieces)¦

2¦(smooth/sharp)¦

3¦(press)¦

4 grind your teeth

5 grind to a halt

Phrasal verbs

　grind somebody<=>down

　grind on

　grind something<=>out

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[: Old English; Origin: grindan]

1.) ¦(INTO SMALL PIECES)¦ [T]

a) also grind up

to break something such as corn or coffee beans into small pieces or powder, either in a machine or between two hard surfaces

▪ freshly ground pepper

b) AmE to cut food, especially raw meat, into very small pieces by putting it through a machine

British Equivalent: mince

▪ ground beef

2.) ¦(SMOOTH/SHARP)¦ [T]

to make something smooth or sharp by rubbing it on a hard surface or by using a machine

▪ a stone for grinding knives and scissors

▪ The lenses are ground to a high standard of precision.

3.) ¦(PRESS)¦

a) [T always + adverb/preposition]

to press something onto a surface and rub it with a strong twisting movement

grind sth into sth

▪ He dropped a cigar butt and ground it into the carpet with his heel.

▪ He ground out his cigarette on the window ledge.

b) [I always + adverb/preposition]

to press hard against something

grind against/together

▪ as these plates (=large areas of land) grind against each other

4.) grind your teeth

to rub your upper and lower teeth together, making a noise

5.) grind to a halt

a) if a vehicle grinds to a halt, it stops gradually

▪ Traffic ground to a halt as it approached the accident site.

b) if a country, organization, or process grinds to a halt, its activity or the process gradually stops

▪ After two days the talks had ground to a halt.

→have an axe to grind at ↑axe¹ (4)

grind down [grind sb<=>down] phr v

to treat someone in a cruel way for such a long time that they lose all courage and hope

= ↑oppress

▪ I've never let male colleagues grind me down.

grind on phr v

to continue for an unpleasantly long time

▪ As the negotiations grind on, time is passing towards the deadline.

grind out [grind sth<=>out] phr v

1.) to produce information, writing, music etc in such large amounts that it becomes boring

= ↑churn out

▪ Frank just keeps grinding out detective stories.

2.) written to say something in a rough, angry, or emotional way

▪ 'You don't love him,' he ground out.

grind ²

grind² n

1.) [singular]

something that is hard work and physically or mentally tiring

▪ I find the journey to work a real grind.

▪ workers emerging from their daily grind in the factory

2.) AmE informal a student who never does anything except study

British Equivalent: swot