grave

2
[ greyv; for 4, 6 also grahv ]
/ greɪv; for 4, 6 also grɑv /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR grave ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, grav·er, grav·est for 1–3, 5.

serious or solemn; sober: a grave person; grave thoughts.
weighty, momentous, or important: grave responsibilities.
threatening a seriously bad outcome or involving serious issues; critical: a grave situation; a grave illness.
Grammar.
  1. unaccented.
  2. spoken on a low or falling pitch.
  3. 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).
(of colors) dull; somber.

noun

the grave accent.

Origin of grave

2
1535–45; < Middle French < Latin gravis; akin to Greek barýs heavy

SYNONYMS FOR grave

1 sedate, staid, thoughtful. Grave, sober, solemn refer to the condition of being serious in demeanor or appearance. Grave indicates a weighty dignity, or the character, aspect, demeanor, speech, etc., of one conscious of heavy responsibilities or cares, or of threatening possibilities: The jury looked grave while studying the evidence. Sober (from its original sense of freedom from intoxication, and hence temperate, staid, sedate) has come to indicate absence of levity, gaiety, or mirth, and thus to be akin to serious and grave: as sober as a judge; a sober expression on one's face. Solemn implies an impressive seriousness and deep earnestness: The minister's voice was solemn as he announced the text.
SEE SYNONYMS FOR grave ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM grave

grave·ly, adverb grave·ness, noun un·grave·ly, adverb

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH grave

gravely gravelly

Words nearby grave

graupel, graustark, grav, gravadlax, gravamen, grave, grave clothes, grave-wax, graveclothes, gravedigger, gravel

Words related to graveness

momentousness, sobriety, exigency, solemnity, staidness, seriousness, sedateness, acuteness, significance, consequence, concern, urgency, severity, weightiness, solemnness

Example sentences from the Web for graveness

British Dictionary definitions for graveness (1 of 5)

grave 1
/ (ɡreɪv) /

noun

a place for the burial of a corpse, esp beneath the ground and usually marked by a tombstone Related adjective: sepulchral
something resembling a grave or resting place the ship went to its grave
the grave a poetic term for death
have one foot in the grave informal to be near death
to make someone turn in his grave or to make someone turn over in his grave to do something that would have shocked or distressed (someone now dead) many modern dictionaries would make Dr Johnson turn in his grave

Word Origin for grave

Old English græf; related to Old Frisian gref, Old High German grab, Old Slavonic grobǔ; see grave ³

British Dictionary definitions for graveness (2 of 5)

grave 2
/ (ɡreɪv) /

adjective

serious and solemn a grave look
full of or suggesting danger a grave situation
important; crucial grave matters of state
(of colours) sober or dull
phonetics
  1. (of a vowel or syllable in some languages with a pitch accent, such as ancient Greek) spoken on a lower or falling musical pitch relative to neighbouring syllables or vowels
  2. of or relating to an accent (`) over vowels, denoting a pronunciation with lower or falling musical pitch (as in ancient Greek), with certain special quality (as in French), or in a manner that gives the vowel status as a syllable nucleus not usually possessed by it in that position (as in English agèd)Compare acute (def. 8), circumflex

noun

a grave accent

Derived forms of grave

gravely, adverb graveness, noun

Word Origin for grave

C16: from Old French, from Latin gravis; related to Greek barus heavy; see gravamen

British Dictionary definitions for graveness (3 of 5)

grave 3
/ (ɡreɪv) /

verb graves, graving, graved, graved or graven (tr) archaic

to cut, carve, sculpt, or engrave
to fix firmly in the mind

Word Origin for grave

Old English grafan; related to Old Norse grafa, Old High German graban to dig

British Dictionary definitions for graveness (4 of 5)

grave 4
/ (ɡreɪv) /

verb

(tr) nautical to clean and apply a coating of pitch to (the bottom of a vessel)

Word Origin for grave

C15: perhaps from Old French grave gravel

British Dictionary definitions for graveness (5 of 5)

grave 5
/ (ˈɡrɑːvɪ) /

adjective, adverb

music to be performed in a solemn manner

Word Origin for grave

C17: from Italian: heavy, from Latin gravis

Medical definitions for graveness

grave
[ grāv ]

adj.

Serious or dangerous, as a symptom or disease.

Idioms and Phrases with graveness

grave

see dig one's own grave; from the cradle to the grave; one foot in the grave; turn in one's grave.