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☕ To crush 💼 To work hard 🔊 To make noise ⏰ Routine work 💃 To dance closely 🧂 A crushing 🔬 Powder size 📚 A hard student
to grind

to grind

60 3.7
To work hard for a long time at a dull or repeated task
  • verb
  • /ɡraɪnd/
translation icon : trabajar duro
  • If you want to achieve your goals, you need to grind consistently and not lose focus.
  • grind away

I saw them work, grind every single day.

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Examples

  • Until then, keep strong, keep grinding it out, keep hustling and keep believing.

  • So I sat there, grinding out original stories, two a week.

    Sunset Boulevard (1950)

  • I saw them work, grind every single day.

    Bedros Keuilian

  • So, so I just, I have to grind it out, right?

    The Math Sorcerer

  • Yeah, sleep, take care of your physical health and grind when it makes sense.

  • Without them, its nuclear plans would quite simply grind to a halt.

    Academic text (2011)

  • You're about to finish, so just keep grinding.

    Joy Ride (2023)

  • Keep grinding, champ.

    Creed III (2023)

  • Day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year, the same grinding, dreary, deadly monotony.

    Academic text (2016)

  • To succeed in her career, she knows she must grind through long hours of work.

Synonyms

to work
vsto grind
∞ 1.0

To move forward slowly while making steady progress

emphasizes steady repetitive effort rather than gradual achievement
to toil
vsto grind
35 5.3

To work very hard for a long time

focuses on steady, often dull work without strong suffering
to labor
vsto grind
  • US
26 2.7

To work hard on difficult physical tasks

is about steady repetitive effort rather than harsh conditions
to dig
vsto grind
23 2.6

To work hard at a task for a long time

adds the idea that tasks are often dull or repetitive
to ply
vsto grind
9 6.9

To work regularly at a trade or skill

refers to steady hard work but not necessarily skilled trade practice
to work like a dog
vsto grind
  • Informal
8 3.4

Spend a lot of time doing hard, tiring tasks

implies steady effort but not necessarily the same exhaustion or unfairness
to slog
vsto grind
5 6.7

To work hard for a long time on a task that is difficult or tiring

emphasizes steady repetitive effort rather than extreme exhaustion
nose to the grindstone
vsto grind
  • Informal
3 6.3

To work hard for a long time without stopping

describes steady hard work generally, not specifically focused determination
to keep one's nose to the grindstone
vsto grind
  • Informal
1 7.7

To work hard for a long time on a difficult task without stopping

is about steady effort but not always that focused or idiomatic
to drudge
vsto grind
1 7.0

To work hard at boring, repetitive tasks for a long time

is similar but not limited to low-status or menial work
to grind away
vsto grind
  • Informal
1 6.3

Work hard for a long time on something, often before an exam or deadline

means steady hard work over time rather than brief intensive bursts
to moil
vsto grind
  • Archaic
1 9.9

To work very hard, often at a physical or long job

covers steady effort but not necessarily physical or heavy work
to travail
vsto grind
  • Literature
1 9.0

To work hard for a long time and suffer

means steady effort but without the strong sense of suffering
to work to the bone
vsto grind
  • Informal
6.0

To do very hard, long tasks until you are very tired

means steady hard work but not necessarily to the point of collapse
to fag
vsto grind
  • UK
9.9

To work very hard until you feel tired

describes steady effort but less the idea of making someone exhausted

Antonyms

to relax
∞ 1.0

To feel less nervous and more calm

Phrasal Verbs

to grind to a halt
10 5.8

Slow down until it stops moving or working

to grind down
2 6.1

Wear a surface away slowly by rubbing, or make someone very tired

to grind out
  • Informal
2 6.0

Make many things like reports or products in a dull routine way

to grind away
  • Informal
1 6.3

Work hard for a long time on something, often before an exam or deadline

to grind down
8.5

Make people suffer and control them by force

Compounds

daily grind
  • Informal
4 4.2

A boring, tiring routine of everyday work and chores

grind organ
  • Archaic
9.9

A small music machine you turn by hand to play tunes from a cylinder with pegs

How Hard

to slave
47 5.3
toil
16 5.8
to slog
5 6.7
to grind
60 3.7
to work
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

grind infinitive
grinding present participle
grinds third person singular
ground past
ground past participle

Etymology

Grind came to mean steady, hard work because grinding grain by hand was slow and tiring. That's why to grind through tasks is to work hard and steadily on dull or repeated jobs.