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grind meaning and examples

2025-08-25

Meaning

Grind has several meanings depending on context:

  1. Verb: To crush or break something into very small pieces or powder by rubbing or pressing.
  2. Verb: To move or work with difficulty, often repetitively or mechanically.
  3. Verb: In informal usage, to work or study very hard, especially over a long period.
  4. Noun: A repetitive, tiring, or difficult task.
  5. Noun (informal): Hard work or effort put into something, often over time.

Grammar and Usage

  • Verb forms: grind – ground – ground
  • As a transitive verb: "He ground the coffee beans."
  • As an intransitive verb: "The machine ground to a halt."
  • As a noun: "The daily grind is exhausting."

Variations

  • Grind away (at sth): To keep working hard for a long time.
  • Grind down: To wear someone out emotionally or physically.
  • Grind out: To produce something in a dull or mechanical way.
  • Grind to a halt/stop: To slow down and finally stop.

Common Phrases

  • "The daily grind" → daily routine, often boring or tiring.
  • "Back to the grind" → returning to normal, repetitive work.
  • "Grind it out" → to persist and keep working through something hard.

Collocations

  • grind coffee/beans
  • grind flour/wheat
  • grind teeth
  • grind metal
  • daily grind
  • hard grind

Examples

  1. He uses a special machine to grind the wheat into flour.
  2. After the summer vacation, it’s back to the daily grind.
  3. She kept grinding away at her studies until she passed the exam.
  4. The bus slowly ground to a halt in front of the station.
  5. Years of poverty had ground him down.
  6. He managed to grind out a win despite his exhaustion.
  7. The workers complained about the constant grind of factory life.
  8. Don’t forget to grind the coffee beans before brewing.
  • Verb: crush, pound, pulverize, work hard, toil, labor
  • Noun: drudgery, slog, routine, labor, effort