gripe
Pronunciation: (grīp), [key] — v., n. griped, grip•ing,
—v.i. - to complain naggingly or constantly; grumble.
- to suffer pain in the bowels.
- (of a sailing vessel) to tend to come into the wind; to be ardent.
—v.t. - to seize and hold firmly; grip; grasp; clutch.
- to produce pain in (the bowels) as if by constriction.
- to distress or oppress.
- to annoy or irritate: His tone of voice gripes me.
- to grasp or clutch, as a miser.
- to secure (a lifeboat) to a deck or against a pudding boom on davits.
—n. - the act of gripping, grasping, or clutching.
- a nagging complaint.
- a firm hold; clutch.
- a grasp; hold; control.
- something that grips or clutches; a claw or grip.
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- a lashing or chain by which a boat is secured to a deck or in position on davits.
- Also calledgripe&prim; piece&sec;.a curved timber connecting the stem or cutwater of a wooden hull with the keel.
- the exterior angle or curve formed by this piece; forefoot.
- the forward end of the dished keel of a metal hull.
- a handle, hilt, etc.
- Usually,an intermittent spasmodic pain in the bowels.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.