grasp
verb /ɡrɑːsp/
/ɡræsp/
Verb Forms
Idioms Phrasal Verbs| present simple I / you / we / they grasp | /ɡrɑːsp/ /ɡræsp/ |
| he / she / it grasps | /ɡrɑːsps/ /ɡræsps/ |
| past simple grasped | /ɡrɑːspt/ /ɡræspt/ |
| past participle grasped | /ɡrɑːspt/ /ɡræspt/ |
| -ing form grasping | /ˈɡrɑːspɪŋ/ /ˈɡræspɪŋ/ |
- grasp somebody/something to take a strong hold of somebody/something synonym grip
- He grasped my hand and shook it warmly.
- Kay grasped him by the wrist.
Synonyms holdhold- hold on
- cling
- clutch
- grip
- grasp
- clasp
- hang on
- hold to have somebody/something in your hand or arms:
- She was holding a large box.
- I held the baby gently in my arms.
- hold on (to somebody/something) to continue to hold somebody/something; to put your hand on somebody/something and not take your hand away:
- Hold on and don’t let go until I say so.
- cling to hold on to somebody/something tightly, especially with your whole body:
- Survivors clung to pieces of floating debris.
- clutch to hold somebody/something tightly, especially in your hand; to take hold of something suddenly:
- She stood there, the flowers still clutched in her hand.
- He felt himself slipping and clutched at a branch.
- grip to hold on to something very tightly with your hand:
- Grip the rope as tightly as you can.
- grasp to take a strong hold of somebody/something:
- He grasped my hand and shook it warmly.
- clasp (formal) to hold somebody/something tightly in your hand or in your arms:
- They clasped hands (= held each other’s hands).
- She clasped the children in her arms.
- hang on (to something) to hold on to something very tightly, especially in order to support yourself or stop yourself from falling:
- Hang on tight. We’re off!
- to hold/clutch/grip/clasp something in your hand/hands
- to hold/clutch/clasp somebody/something in your arms
- to hold/clutch/grip/grasp/clasp/hang on to something
- to hold/cling/hang on
- to hold/clutch/clasp somebody/something to you
- to hold/hold on to/cling to/clutch/grip/grasp/clasp/hang on to somebody/something tightly
- to hold/hold on to/cling to/clutch/grip/grasp/clasp somebody/something firmly
- to hold/hold on to/clutch/grip/clasp/hang on to somebody/something tight
Extra Examples- Her hands were grasping at his coat.
- She grasped him tightly by the wrist.
- She grasped hold of the banister to support herself.
- He grasped the pan by its handle.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- firmly
- tightly
- at
- by
- grasp hold of somebody/something
- to understand something completely
- grasp something They failed to grasp the importance of his words.
- grasp how, why, etc… She was unable to grasp how to do it.
- grasp that… It took him some time to grasp that he was now a public figure.
Synonyms understandunderstand- see
- get
- follow
- grasp
- comprehend
- understand to know or realize the meaning of words, a language, what somebody says, etc; to know or realize how or why something happens, how it works or why it is important:
- I don’t understand the instructions.
- Doctors still don’t understand much about the disease.
- see to understand what is happening, what somebody is saying, how something works or how important something is:
- ‘It opens like this.’ ‘Oh, I see.’
- Oh yes, I see what you mean.
- get (informal) to understand a joke, what somebody is trying to tell you, or a situation that they are trying to describe:
- She didn’t get the joke.
- I don’t get you.
- follow to understand an explanation, a story or the meaning of something:
- Sorry—I don’t quite follow.
- The plot is almost impossible to follow.
- grasp to come to understand a fact, an idea or how to do something:
- They failed to grasp the importance of his words.
- comprehend (often used in negative statements) (formal) to understand a fact, idea or reason:
- The concept of infinity is almost impossible for the human mind to comprehend.
- to understand/see/get/follow/grasp/comprehend what/why/how…
- to understand/see/grasp/comprehend that…
- to understand/see/get/grasp the point/idea (of something)
- to be easy/difficult/hard to understand/see/follow/grasp/comprehend
- to fully understand/see/grasp/comprehend something
Extra Examples- It's a difficult concept for children to understand/grasp.
- By this time, engineers understood/had grasped the basic principles of aerodynamics.
- a means by which students can more easily grasp the basics of science
- Some of these concepts are very difficult to grasp.
- She failed to grasp the significance of these facts.
- I hadn't really grasped what they were talking about.
- He was quick to grasp the basic principles.
- He had not fully grasped the fact that he was the one who would pay for all this.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- fully
- not quite
- not really
- …
- try to
- be unable to
- fail to
- …
- grasp a chance/an opportunity to take an opportunity without hesitating and use it
- I grasped the opportunity to work abroad.
Word Originlate Middle English: perhaps related to grope.
Idioms
clutch/grasp at straws
- to try all possible means to find a solution or some hope in a difficult or unpleasant situation, even though this seems very unlikely
- I know I’m just clutching at straws here, but is it possible that the doctors are wrong?
grasp the nettle
- (British English) to deal with a difficult situation without hesitating
- The government now has the opportunity to grasp the nettle of prison reform.