v.
(grips, gripping, gripped)
- take and keep a firm hold of.
- (of an emotion or situation) have a strong or adverse effect on.
▸
[often as adj. gripping]
hold the attention or interest of.
n.
- a firm hold.
▸effective control:
he had to take a grip on his nerves.
▸an understanding of something.
- a part or attachment by which something is held in the hand.
▸Brit. a hairgrip.
- a travelling bag.
- a stagehand in a theatre.
▸a member of a camera crew responsible for moving and setting up equipment.
Phrase
- come
(or get)
to grips with
- engage in combat with.
- begin to deal with or understand.
- lose one's grip
become unable to understand or control one's situation.
Derivative
- gripper n.
- grippingly adv.
- grippy adj.
Etymology
OE grippa (v.), gripe ‘grasp, clutch’ (n.), gripa ‘handful, sheath’; rel. to gripe.