to say grace
35
5.5
- phrasal verb
- /seɪ ɡreɪs/
:
decir la bendición
- Many of us Vietnamese adoptees have acute memories of dutifully saying grace before meals and reciting the Lord's Prayer before hopping into bed.
- say grace before meals
- families say grace
- always say grace
And now, of course, we always say grace and I'd say we only do this when companies here.
- And now, of course, we always say grace and I'd say we only do this when companies here.
Examples
-
We bowed our heads, and then my mother said grace over the food.
Fiction book (2000) -
I think it's time to say grace.
-
Yes, um, it's just... would you mind if we said grace first?
-
- Who wants to say grace?
-
Who would like to say grace?
-
Would you care to say grace?
-
Would you like to say grace?
Fiction book (2001) -
I'd like to say grace.
-
When Daddy said grace, he thanked God for "all those present at our table."
Fiction book (1995) -
Before we eat, let's all hold hands while I say grace.
Synonyms
56
1.4
To show you are grateful, often in words or prayer
How Religious
35
5.5
56
1.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'say' (to speak) plus 'grace' (a short thanksgiving prayer) yields 'to recite the prayer,' so a learner who knows both constituent meanings can infer the MWE. This is a routine verb + noun action pattern found cross-linguistically, making the expression immediately transparent to B1 learners who know the word 'grace' in the prayer sense.
Etymology
The phrase say grace comes from the old habit of people saying a short prayer called grace to thank and ask for a blessing before a meal. Picture heads bowed while someone quietly says that prayer, and so say grace means 'to say a short prayer of thanks before a meal'.