grovel
pronunciation
How to pronounce grovel in British English:
UK [ˈgrɒvl]
How to pronounce grovel in American English:
US [ˈgrɑvl]
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- Verb:
- show submission or fear
Word Origin
- grovel
- grovel: [16] Old and Middle English had a suffix -ling, used for making adverbs denoting direction or condition. Few survive, and of those that do, most have had their -ling changed to the more logical-sounding -long (headlong and sidelong, for instance, used to be headling and sideling; darkling still hangs on – just – unchanged).Among them was grovelling, an adverb meaning ‘face downwards’ based on the phrase on grufe ‘on the face or stomach’, which in turn was a partial translation of Old Norse á grúfu, literally ‘on proneness’ (grúfu may be related to English creep). It was not long before grovelling came to be regarded as a present participle, and the new verb grovel was coined from it.=> creep
- grovel (v.)
- 1590s, Shakespearean back-formation from groveling "on the face, prostrate" (mid-14c.), also used in Middle English as an adjective but probably really an adverb, from gruffe, from Old Norse grufe "prone" + obsolete adverbial suffix -ling (which survives also as the -long in headlong, sidelong). The Old Norse word is found in liggja à grufu "lie face-down," literally "lie on proneness." Old Norse also had grufla "to grovel," grufa "to grovel, cower, crouch down." The whole group is perhaps related to creep (v.). Related: Groveled; grovelled; groveling; grovelling.
Example
- 1. Waiters and receptionists grovel before him . The police treat him with deference .
- 2. I will apologize to him but I won 't grovel .
- 3. I had been about to apologize and grovel for her forgiveness hearing the tears leak into her voice .
- 4. If you expect to gain favours from theking , you will have to grovel beforehimtoshow your respect and obedience .
- 5. Mayis if I really grovel , he will pass me .