grip

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈɡɹɪp/^[1]

Etymology

The noun is inherited from Old English gripe (“grasp, clutch”), fused with gripa, a handful, sheaf;^[2][3][4][5] the verb is grippan (“to grip, seize”).^[2][3][5] Both are related to Old English grīpan, to seize (see gripe),^[2][3][4] from West Germanic *greipan,^[2] from PIE *ghreib-.^[3] French gripper (“to seize”) and griffe, claw, are Germanic loans.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

A grasp, clutch: gripe about 725, in Beowulf;^[3] grippan about 950, in the Lindisfarne Gospels.^[3]

Semantic evolution

The act of grasping, the power to grip, is from about 1200,^[2] and firm hold or control, power, from 1450–70 (the mid-15th century).^[6][2] Intellectual hold, to lose one's grip, is from 1635.^[6] A handshake, especially the secret one of a society, is from 1785.^[2][6] That by which a thing is grasped, a handle, is from 1867.^[2] A stagehand who shifts scenery is from 1888.^[2] Ability to function well, competence, is a further sense.^[7]

Timeline

• c. 725 – gripe, a clutch.^[3]
• c. 950 – grippan, to seize.^[3]
• 1450–70 – control, mastery.^[6]
• 1635 – intellectual hold.^[6]
• 1785 – a secret handshake.^[2]
• 1888 – a stagehand.^[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A firm hold or grasp, or the strength of it.
2. A way of holding something, as a racket or club.
3. Understanding or control: get a grip on.
4. A handle, or a device that grasps and holds.
5. A stagehand who moves scenery or camera equipment.

Verb

1. To take and keep a firm hold of.
2. To hold the interest or attention of.

Word family

• gripper
• grippingly
• gripless
• gripping
• grippy
• regrip
• ungrip
• gripman

Related words

• gripe
• grasp
• grope
• grab

Usage notes

Two unrelated words are a dialect grip, a small ditch or trench, from Old English grȳpe,^[5][8] and grip, a variant of grippe, influenza.^[7]

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
4. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
8. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)