5 entries under this word
a final syllable in the names of places, is a grove, A-S. gräf; or, it is a ruler, D. graaf, count, Ger. graf, M. H. Ger. grave, O. H. Ger. grâvo, L. Lat. gravio, grafio, graphio, from Gr. γράφειν, to write. It is used principally in composition, as landgrave, margrave.
[imp. GRAVED; p. p. GRAVEN, or GRAVED; p. pr. & vb. n. GRAVING.] [Fr. graver, Sp. grabar, gravar, from Ger. graben, O. H. Ger. & Goth. graban, D. graven, Dan. grave, Sw. gräfva, Icel. grafa, O. Fries. greva, A-S. grafan, allied to Gr. γράφειν, to grave, scratch, write.]
Sense 1. To carve or cut, as letters or figures, on some hard substance; to engrave.
Thou shalt take two onyx-stones, and grave on them the names of the children of Israel. Ex. xxviii. 9.
Sense 2. To carve out or give shape to, by cutting with a chisel; as, to grave an image.
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image. Ex. xx. 4.
Sense 3. (Naut.) To clean a ship’s bottom by burning off filth, grass, or other foreign matter, and paying it over with pitch.
Sense 4. To entomb. [Obs.]
Lie full low, graved in the hollow ground. Shak.
Sense 5. (Mus.) To render grave, as a note or tone.
To write or delineate on hard substances; to practice engraving.
[A-S. gräf, from grafan, to dig, grave, carve, Dan. grav, Sw., D., & O. Sax. graf, Icel. gröf, Ger. grab, from graben, allied to Russ. grob, grave, coffin. See supra.]
Sense 1. An excavation in the earth as a place of burial; hence, also, any place of interment; tomb; sepulcher.
Graves, yawn and yield your dead. Shak.
Sense 2. Death, or destruction; end of existence.
Richard marked him for the grave. Shak.
Sense 3. (pl.) The sediment of melted tallow.
a. [compar. GRAVER; superl. GRAVEST.] [Fr., Sp., & It. grave, Pr. greu, grieu, O. Fr. gref, grief, from Lat. gravis, heavy.]
Sense 1. Characterized by weight; heavy; ponderous; — said of material. [Obs. and rare.] “His shield grave and great.” Chapman.
Sense 2. Of importance; momentous; weighty; influential; serious; — said of character, relations, &c.; as, grave department, character, &c.
Most potent, grave, and reverend seigniors. Shak.
A grave and prudent law, full of moral equity. Milton.
Sense 3. Not light or gay; solemn; sober; plain; as, a grave color.
Sense 4. (Mus.) Not acute or sharp; low; deep; — said of sound; as, a grave note or key.
The thicker the cord or string, the more grave is the note or tone. Moore.
Grave accent, (Pron.) See ACCENT.
Synonyms— Solemn; sober; serious; sage; staid; demure; thoughtful; sedate; weighty; momentous; important.— GRAVE, SOBER, SERIOUS, SOLEMN. Sober supposes the absence of all exhilaration of spirits, and is opposed to flighty; as, sober thought. Serious implies considerateness or reflection, and is opposed to jocose or sportive; as, serious and important concerns. Grave denotes a state of mind, appearance, &c., which results from the pressure of weighty interests, and is opposed to hilarity of feeling or vivacity of manner; as, a grave remark; grave attire. Solemn is applied to a case in which gravity is carried to its highest point; as, a solemn admonition, a solemn promise. The sober follies of the wise and great. Pope. There's nothing serious in mortality; All is but toys. Shak. Youth on silent wings is flown; Graver years come rolling on. Prior. There reigned a solemn silence over all. Spenser.