grate
1 of 3noun
ˈgrāt 
1
: grating sense 2
2
a
: a barred frame for cooking over a fire
b
: a frame or bed of iron bars to hold a stove or furnace fire
c
: fireplace
3
obsolete : cage, prison
grate
2 of 3verb (1)
grated; grating
transitive verb
: to furnish with a grate
the lower windows were grated
grate
3 of 3verb (2)
grated; grating
transitive verb
1
: to reduce to small particles by rubbing on something rough
grate cheese
2
: fret, irritate
3
a
: to gnash or grind noisily
b
: to cause to make a rasping sound
c
: to utter in a harsh voice
4
archaic : abrade
intransitive verb
1
: to rub or rasp noisily
metal grating against metal
2
: to cause irritation : jar
a voice that grates on the nerves
grater noun
gratingly
ˈgrā-tiŋ-lē
adverb 
Synonyms
Verb (1)
- aggravate
- annoy
- bother
- bug
- burn (up)
- chafe
- eat
- exasperate
- frost
- gall
- get
- gripe
- hack (off)
- irk
- irritate
- itch
- nark [British]
- nettle
- peeve
- persecute
- pique
- put out
- rasp
- rile
- ruffle
- spite
- vex
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web
Nicole Charky-chami, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Aug. 2022 Naturally, the set of photos also finds the two-time Grammy-winning artist standing over a grate of sorts. Anna Chan, Billboard, 22 July 2022 The Ninja AG301 Foodi Indoor Grill and Air Fryer comes with a grill grate, 4-quart crisper basket, 6-quart cooking pot, a cleaning brush and even a 15-recipe cookbook created by actual chefs. Joe Morales, Good Housekeeping, 5 July 2022 Those swabs returned a cluster of positives in the south-western corner of the market—on a glove found on one of the stalls, from a grate under one of the cages. Wired, 5 Aug. 2022 Three bears were rescued from a sewer grate in Simsbury Wednesday afternoon after being stuck underground overnight. Mike Mavredakis, Hartford Courant, 4 Aug. 2022 Prosecutors said a 16-year-old girl was stabbed and her mother was threatened with a makeshift weapon — a roughly 2-foot long trench drainage grate. Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Aug. 2022 For a top-quality barrel smoker priced well under $300, the Smokin' Pro 830 is a terrific dual-compartment smoker, featuring an impressive 830 square inches of cooking space and a three-position fire grate in the main compartment. Rachel Klein, Popular Mechanics, 10 July 2022 When ready to grill, spray a cold grill grate with grilling spray and turn grill to medium-high heat. Bethany Thayer, Detroit Free Press, 25 June 2022 cleveland, 26 May 2022 Using the holes of a large grater, grate the butter into the dry ingredients. G. Daniela Galarza, Washington Post, 29 July 2022 The didacticism can sometimes grate, but in general Special succeeds at prioritizing songcraft over sloganeering. Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 19 July 2022 Using a fine grater, grate the cotija cheese over the platter. Von Diaz, Washington Post, 3 June 2022 The hour, both brisk and sedate, was hosted by Darren Criss and Julianne Hough, whose cheerleader pep seemed to grate even on themselves. Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 13 June 2022 Streaming, the cheap and convenient format that came to rule the industry in the past decade, has begun to grate on a diverse range of artists and listeners. Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 9 June 2022 There’s also a lack of subtlety that begins to grate after a while. Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 May 2022 To get the juice, peel and grate a cucumber, then wrap in a clean dish towel and squeeze juice into a dish. Dahlia Ghabour, The Courier-Journal, 2 May 2022 See More
Noun
The lockable grill grate gives you smoked flavor and heat but stops food from falling out of the basket. Nicole Charky-chami, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Aug. 2022 Naturally, the set of photos also finds the two-time Grammy-winning artist standing over a grate of sorts. Anna Chan, Billboard, 22 July 2022 The Ninja AG301 Foodi Indoor Grill and Air Fryer comes with a grill grate, 4-quart crisper basket, 6-quart cooking pot, a cleaning brush and even a 15-recipe cookbook created by actual chefs. Joe Morales, Good Housekeeping, 5 July 2022 Those swabs returned a cluster of positives in the south-western corner of the market—on a glove found on one of the stalls, from a grate under one of the cages. Wired, 5 Aug. 2022 Three bears were rescued from a sewer grate in Simsbury Wednesday afternoon after being stuck underground overnight. Mike Mavredakis, Hartford Courant, 4 Aug. 2022 Prosecutors said a 16-year-old girl was stabbed and her mother was threatened with a makeshift weapon — a roughly 2-foot long trench drainage grate. Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Aug. 2022 For a top-quality barrel smoker priced well under $300, the Smokin' Pro 830 is a terrific dual-compartment smoker, featuring an impressive 830 square inches of cooking space and a three-position fire grate in the main compartment. Rachel Klein, Popular Mechanics, 10 July 2022 When ready to grill, spray a cold grill grate with grilling spray and turn grill to medium-high heat. Bethany Thayer, Detroit Free Press, 25 June 2022 Verb
Its also great to grate fresh nutmeg, hard cheeses and fresh ginger. cleveland, 26 May 2022 Using the holes of a large grater, grate the butter into the dry ingredients. G. Daniela Galarza, Washington Post, 29 July 2022 The didacticism can sometimes grate, but in general Special succeeds at prioritizing songcraft over sloganeering. Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 19 July 2022 Using a fine grater, grate the cotija cheese over the platter. Von Diaz, Washington Post, 3 June 2022 The hour, both brisk and sedate, was hosted by Darren Criss and Julianne Hough, whose cheerleader pep seemed to grate even on themselves. Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 13 June 2022 Streaming, the cheap and convenient format that came to rule the industry in the past decade, has begun to grate on a diverse range of artists and listeners. Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 9 June 2022 There’s also a lack of subtlety that begins to grate after a while. Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 May 2022 To get the juice, peel and grate a cucumber, then wrap in a clean dish towel and squeeze juice into a dish. Dahlia Ghabour, The Courier-Journal, 2 May 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Noun and Verb (1)
Middle English, from Medieval Latin crata, grata hurdle, alteration of Latin cratis — more at hurdle
Verb (2)
Middle English, from Anglo-French grater to scratch, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German krazzōn to scratch
First Known Use
Noun
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Verb (1)
1547, in the meaning defined above
Verb (2)
14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Kids Definition
grate 1 of 2
verb
ˈgrāt
grated; grating
1
: to break into small pieces by rubbing against something rough
grate cheese
2
: to grind or rub against something with a harsh noise
3
: to have an irritating effect
His voice grates on me.
grate
2 of 2noun
1
: a frame containing parallel or crossed bars (as in a window)
2
: a frame of iron bars to hold a fire
grate
verb
1
as in to annoy
to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts unintentionally or not, you say rude things that grate people Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- annoy
- bother
- irritate
- bug
- get
- persecute
- rasp
- eat
- spite
- aggravate
- anger
- gripe
- irk
- frost
- get to
- worry
- wear on
- nettle
- ruffle
- infuriate
- vex
- exasperate
- put out
- rile
- peeve
- pique
- gall
- itch
- chafe
- plague
- nark
- insult
- tease
- provoke
- set one's teeth on edge
- get on one's nerves
- stick in one's craw
- get one's goat
- rub the wrong way
- nag
- rouse
- hack (off)
- burn (up)
- harry
- enrage
- hassle
- offend
- outrage
- badger
- upset
- incense
- harass
- bait
- devil
- agitate
- disquiet
- heckle
- distress
- antagonize
- inflame
- unsettle
- discomfort
- exercise
- roil
- madden
- affront
- rankle
- ballyrag
- bullyrag
- enflame
- unhinge
- miff
- fret
- discompose
- perturb
- hagride
- pester
- undo
- freak (out)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- placate
- appease
- satisfy
- please
- conciliate
- gratify
- delight
- mollify
- pacify
- oblige
- cheer
- propitiate
- content
- comfort
- assure
- soothe
- quiet
- console
- reassure
- gladden
- solace
2
as in to scratch
to pass roughly and noisily over or against a surface the sled grated along the bare pavement Synonyms & Similar Words
- scratch
- rub
- grind
- scrape
- rasp
- groan
- whine
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- slide
- glide
- skate
3
as in to grit
to press or strike against or together so as to make a scraping sound he grated the pieces of metal together Synonyms & Similar Words
- grit
- scrape
- scratch
- grind
- crunch
- creak
- gnash
- groan
- whine
- rasp
- scrunch
- moan
- jar
- clash
- collide
- jangle