Chapter 77

How inly sorrow gripes his soul.

Shak.

Gripe, v. i. 1. To clutch, hold, or pinch a thing, esp. money, with a gripe or as with a gripe.

2. To suffer griping pains. Jocke.

3. (Naut.) To tend to come up into the wind, as a ship which, when sailing closehauled, requires constant labor at the helm. R. H. Dana, Jr.

Gripe, n. 1. Grasp; seizure; fast hold; clutch.

A barren scepter in my gripe.

Shak.

2. That on which the grasp is put; a handle; a grip; as, the gripe of a sword.

3. (Mech.) A device for grasping or holding anything; a brake to stop a wheel.

4. Oppression; cruel exaction; affiction; pinching distress; as, the gripe of poverty.

5. Pinching and spasmodic pain in the intestines; -- chiefly used in the plural.

6. (Naut.) (a) The piece of timber which terminates the keel at the fore end; the forefoot. (b) The compass or sharpness of a ship's stern under the water, having a tendency to make her keep a good wind. (c) pl. An assemblage of ropes, dead-eyes, and hocks, fastened to ringbolts in the deck, to secure the boats when hoisted; also, broad bands passed around a boat to secure it at the davits and prevent swinging.

Gripe penny, a miser; a niggard. D. L. Mackenzie.

Gripe"ful (?), a. Disposed to gripe; extortionate.

Grip"er (?), a. One who gripes; an oppressor; an extortioner. Burton.

Grip"ing*ly (?), adv. In a griping or oppressive manner. Bacon.

Grip"man (?), n. The man who manipulates a grip.

Grippe (?), n. [F.] (Med.) The influenza or epidemic catarrh. Dunglison.

Grip"per (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, grips or seizes.

2. pl. In printing presses, the fingers or nippers.

Grip"ple (?), n. A grasp; a gripe. [Obs.] Spenser.

Grip"ple, a. [Dim. fr. gripe.] Griping; greedy; covetous; tenacious. [Obs.] Spenser.

Grip"ple*ness, n. The quality of being gripple. [Obs.]

Grip"sack` (?), n. A traveler's handbag. [Colloq.]

||Gris (?), a. [OF. & F., fr. LL. griseus; of German origin; cf. MHG. ||gris, G. greis, hoary. Cf. Grizzle.] Gray. [R.] Chaucer.

Gris (?), n. [OF., fr. gris gray. Cf. G. grauwerk (lit. gray work) the gray skin of the Siberian squirrel. See Gris, a.] A costly kind of fur. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Gris (grs), n. sing. & pl. [See Grice a pig.] A little pig. [Obs.] Piers Plowman.

||Gri"saille` (?), n. [F., from gris gray.] 1. (Fine Arts) Decorative ||painting in gray monochrome; -- used in English especially for ||painted glass.

2. A kind of French fancy dress goods. Knight.

Gris"am`ber (?), n. [See Ambergris.] Ambergris. [Obs.] Milton.

Grise (grs), n. See Grice, a pig. [Prov. Eng.]

Grise (grs or grs), n. [Prop. pl. of gree a step.] A step (in a flight of stairs); a degree. [Obs.]

Every grise of fortune Is smoothed by that below.

Shak.

Gris"e*ous (?), a. [LL. griseus. See Gris.] Of a light color, or white, mottled with black or brown; grizzled or grizzly. Maunder.

||Gri*sette" (?), n. [F., fr. grisette a gray woolen cloth, fr. gris ||gray. Grisettes were so called because they wore gray gowns made of ||this stuff. See Gars.] A French girl or young married woman of the ||lower class; more frequently, a young working woman who is fond of ||gallantry. Sterne.

Gris"kin (?), n. [Grise a pig + - kin.] The spine of a hog. [Obs.]

Gri"sled (?), a. [Obs.] See Grizzled.

Gris"li*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being grisly; horrid. Sir P. Sidney.

Gris"ly (?), a. [OE, grisly, grislich, AS. grislic, gryslic, fr. gr&?;san to shudder; cf. OD. grijselick horrible, OHG. grisenl?ch, and also AS. gre?san to frighten, and E. gruesome.] Frightful; horrible; dreadful; harsh; as, grisly locks; a grisly specter. "Grisly to behold." Chaucer.

A man of grisly and stern gravity.

Robynson (More's Utopia).

Grisly bear. (Zoˆl.) See under Grizzly.

Gri"son (?), n. [F., fr. grison gray, gray-haired, gris gray. See Gris.] (Zoˆl.) (a) A South American animal of the family Mustelidae (Galictis vittata). It is about two feet long, exclusive of the tail. Its under parts are black. Also called South American glutton. (b) A South American monkey (Lagothrix infumatus), said to be gluttonous.

Gri"sons (?), n. pl. [F.] (Geog.) (a) Inhabitants of the eastern Swiss Alps. (b) sing. The largest and most eastern of the Swiss cantons.

Grist (?), n. [AS. grist, fr. grindan. See Grind.]

1. Ground corn; that which is ground at one time; as much grain as is carried to the mill at one time, or the meal it produces.

Get grist to the mill to have plenty in store.

Tusser. Q.

2. Supply; provision. Swift.

3. In rope making, a given size of rope, common grist being a rope three inches in circumference, with twenty yarns in each of the three strands. Knight.

All is grist that comes to his mill, all that he has anything to do with is a source of profit. [Colloq.] -- To bring grist to the maill, to bring profitable business into one's hands; to be a source of profit. [Colloq.] Ayliffe.

Gris"tle (?), n. [OE. gristel, gristil, AS. gristl; akin to OFries. gristel, grestel. Perh. a dim. of grist but cf. OHG. krustila, krostela. Cf. Grist.] (Anat.) Cartilage. See Cartilage. Bacon.

Gris"tly (?), a. (Anat.) Consisting of, or containing, gristle; like gristle; cartilaginous.

Grist"mill" (?), n. A mill for grinding grain; especially, a mill for grinding grists, or portions of grain brought by different customers; a custom mill.

Grit (?), n. [OE, greet, greot, sand, gravel, AS. greÛt grit, sant, dust; akin to OS griott, OFries. gret gravel, OHG. grioz, G. griess, Icel. grjt, and to E. groats, grout. See Groats, Grout, and cf. Grail gravel.] 1. Sand or gravel; rough, hard particles.

2. The coarse part of meal.

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3. pl. Grain, esp. oats or wheat, hulled and coarsely ground; in high milling, fragments of cracked wheat smaller than groats.

4. (Geol.) A hard, coarse-grained siliceous sandstone; as, millstone grit; -- called also gritrock and gritstone. The name is also applied to a finer sharp-grained sandstone; as, grindstone grit.

5. Structure, as adapted to grind or sharpen; as, a hone of good grit.

6. Firmness of mind; invincible spirit; unyielding courage; fortitude. C. Reade. E. P. Whipple.

Grit (grt), v. i. To give forth a grating sound, as sand under the feet; to grate; to grind.

The sanded floor that grits beneath the tread.

Goldsmith.

Grit, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Gritted; p. pr. &, vb. n. Gritting.] To grind; to rub harshly together; to grate; as, to grit the teeth. [Collog.]

Grith (grth), n. [AS. gri peace; akin to Icel. grid.] Peace; security; agreement. [Obs.] Gower.

{ Grit"rock` (grt"rk`), Grit"stone` (-stn`) } n. (Geol.) See Grit, n., 4.

Grit"ti*ness (-t*ns), n. The quality of being gritty.

Grit"ty (-t), a. 1. Containing sand or grit; consisting of grit; caused by grit; full of hard particles.

2. Spirited; resolute; unyielding. [Colloq., U. S.]

Griv"et (grv"t), n. [Cf. F. grivet.] (Zoˆl.) A monkey of the upper Nile and Abyssinia (Cercopithecus griseo-viridis), having the upper parts dull green, the lower parts white, the hands, ears, and face black. It was known to the ancient Egyptians. Called also tota.

Grize (grz or grz), n. Same as 2d Grise. [Obs.]

Griz"e*lin (grz"*ln), a. See Gridelin.

Griz"zle (?), n. [F. gris: cf. grisaille hair partly gray, fr. gris gray. See Gris, and cf. Grisaille.] Gray; a gray color; a mixture of white and black. Shak.

Griz"zled (?), a. Gray; grayish; sprinkled or mixed with gray; of a mixed white and black.

Grizzled hair flowing in elf locks.

Sir W. Scott.

Griz"zly (?), a. Somewhat gray; grizzled.

Old squirrels that turn grizzly.

Bacon.

Grizzly bear (Zoˆl.), a large and ferocious bear (Ursus horribilis) of Western North America and the Rocky Mountains. It is remarkable for the great length of its claws.

Griz"zly, n.; pl. Grizzlies (&?;). 1. (Zoˆl.) A grizzly bear. See under Grizzly, a.

2. pl. In hydraulic mining, gratings used to catch and throw out large stones from the sluices. [Local, U. S.] Raymond.

Groan (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Groaned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Groaning.] [OE. gronen, granen, granien, AS. gr&?;nian, fr. the root of grennian to grin. &radic;35. See 2d Grin, and cf. Grunt.] 1. To give forth a low, moaning sound in breathing; to utter a groan, as in pain, in sorrow, or in derision; to moan.

For we . . . do groan, being burdened.

2 Cor. v. 4.

He heard the groaning of the oak.

Sir W. Scott.

2. To strive after earnestly, as with groans.

Nothing but holy, pure, and clear, Or that which groaneth to be so.

Herbert.

Groan, v. t. To affect by groans.

Groan, n. A low, moaning sound; usually, a deep, mournful sound uttered in pain or great distress; sometimes, an expression of strong disapprobation; as, the remark was received with groans.

Such groans of roaring wind and rain.

Shak.

The wretched animal heaved forth such groans.

Shak.

Groan"ful (?), a. Agonizing; sad. [Obs.] Spenser.

Groat (?), n. [LG. grte, orig., great, that is, a great piece of coin, larger than other coins in former use. See Great.] 1. An old English silver coin, equal to four pence.

2. Any small sum of money.

Groats (?), n. pl. [OE. grot, AS. grtan; akin to Icel. grautr porridge, and to E. gritt, grout. See Grout.] Dried grain, as oats or wheat, hulled and broken or crushed; in high milling, cracked fragments of wheat larger than grits.

Embden groats, crushed oats.

Gro"cer (?), n. [Formerly written grosser, orig., one who sells by the gross, or deals by wholesale, fr. F. grossier, marchand grossier, fr. gros large, great. See Gross.] A trader who deals in tea, sugar, spices, coffee, fruits, and various other commodities.

Grocer's itch (Med.), a disease of the skin, caused by handling sugar and treacle.

Gro"cer*y (?), n.; pl. Groceries (#). [F. grosserie wholesale. See Grocer.] 1. The commodities sold by grocers, as tea, coffee, spices, etc.; -- in the United States almost always in the plural form, in this sense.

A deal box . . . to carry groceries in.

Goldsmith.

The shops at which the best families of the neighborhood bought grocery and millinery.

Macaulay.

2. A retail grocer's shop or store. [U. S.]

Grog (?), n. [So named from "Old Grog" a nickname given to Admiral Vernon, in allusion to his wearing a grogram cloak in foul weather. He is said to have been the first to dilute the rum of the sailors (about 1745).] A mixture of spirit and water not sweetened; hence, any intoxicating liquor.

Grog blossom, a redness on the nose or face of persons who drink ardent spirits to excess. [Collog.]

Grog"ger*y (?), n.; pl. Groggeries (#). A grogshop. [Slang, U. S.]

Grog"gi*ness (?), n. 1. State of being groggy.

2. (Man.) Tenderness or stiffness in the foot of a horse, which causes him to move in a hobbling manner.

Grog"gy (?), a. 1. Overcome with grog; tipsy; unsteady on the legs. [Colloq.]

2. Weakened in a fight so as to stagger; -- said of pugilists. [Cant or Slang]

3. (Man.) Moving in a hobbling manner, owing to ten der feet; -- said of a horse. Youatt.

{ Grog"ram (?), Grog"ran (?), } n. [OF. gros-grain, lit., gros-grain, of a coarse texture. See Gross, and Grain a kernel, and cf. Grog.] A coarse stuff made of silk and mohair, or of coarse silk.

Grog"shop` (?), n. A shop or room where strong liquors are sold and drunk; a dramshop.

Groin (?), n. [F. groin, fr. grogner to grunt, L. grunnire.] The snout of a swine. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Groin, v. i. [F. grogner to grunt, grumble.] To grunt to growl; to snarl; to murmur. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Bears that groined coatinually.

Spenser.

Groin, n. [Icel. grein distinction, division, branch; akin to Sw. gren, branch, space between the legs, Icel. greina to distinguish, divide, Sw. grena to branch, straddle. Cf. Grain a branch.] 1. (Anat.) The line between the lower part of the abdomen and the thigh, or the region of this line; the inguen.

2. (Arch.) The projecting solid angle formed by the meeting of two vaults, growing more obtuse as it approaches the summit.

3. (Math.) The surface formed by two such vaults.

4. A frame of woodwork across a beach to accumulate and retain shingle. [Eng.] Weale.

Groin, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Groined (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Groining.] (Arch.) To fashion into groins; to build with groins.

The hand that rounded Peter's dome, And groined the aisles of Christian Rome, Wrought in a sad sincerity.

Emerson.

Groined (?), a. (Arch.) Built with groins; as, a groined ceiling; a groined vault.

Grom"et (?), n. Same as Grommet.

Grom"ill (?), n. (Bot.) See Gromwell.

Grom"met (?), n. [F. gourmette curb, curb chain, fr. gourmer to curb, thump, beat; cf. Armor. gromm a curb, gromma to curb.] 1. A ring formed by twisting on itself a single strand of an unlaid rope; also, a metallic eyelet in or for a sail or a mailbag. Sometimes written grummet.

2. (Mil.) A ring of rope used as a wad to hold a cannon ball in place.

Grom"well (?), n. [Called also gromel, grommel, graymill, and gray millet, all prob. fr. F. gr?mil, cf. W. cromandi.] (Bot.) A plant of the genus Lithospermum (L. arvense), anciently used, because of its stony pericarp, in the cure of gravel. The German gromwell is the Stellera. [Written also gromill.]

Grond (?), obs. imp. of Grind. Chaucer.

Gron"te (?), obs. imp. of Groan. Chaucer.

Groom (?), n. [Cf. Scot. grome, groyme, grume, gome, guym, man, lover, OD. grom boy, youth; perh. the r is an insertion as in E. bridegroom, and the word is the same as AS. guma man. See Bridegroom.] 1. A boy or young man; a waiter; a servant; especially, a man or boy who has charge of horses, or the stable. Spenser.

2. One of several officers of the English royal household, chiefly in the lord chamberlain's department; as, the groom of the chamber; the groom of the stole.

3. A man recently married, or about to be married; a bridegroom. Dryden.

Groom porter, formerly an officer in the English royal household, who attended to the furnishing of the king's lodgings and had certain privileges.

Groom, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Groomed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Grooming.] To tend or care for, or to curry or clean, as a, horse.

Groom"er (?), n. One who, or that which, grooms horses; especially, a brush rotated by a flexible or jointed revolving shaft, for cleaning horses.

Grooms"man (?), n.; pl. Groomsmen (&?;). A male attendant of a bridegroom at his wedding; -- the correlative of bridesmaid.

Groop"er (?), n. (Zoˆl.) See Grouper.

Groove (?), n. [D. groef, groeve; akin to E. grove. See Grove.] 1. A furrow, channel, or long hollow, such as may be formed by cutting, molding, grinding, the wearing force of flowing water, or constant travel; a depressed way; a worn path; a rut.

2. Hence: The habitual course of life, work, or affairs; fixed routine.

The gregarious trifling of life in the social groove.

J. Morley.

3. [See Grove.] (Mining) A shaft or excavation. [Prov. Eng.]

Groove, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Grooved (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Groving.] To cut a groove or channel in; to form into channels or grooves; to furrow.

Groov"er (?), n. 1. One who or that which grooves.

2. A miner. [Prov. Eng.] Holloway.

Groov"ing (?), n. The act of forming a groove or grooves; a groove, or collection of grooves.

Grope (grp), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Groped (grpt); p. pr. & vb. n. Groping.] [OE. gropen, gropien, grapien, AS. grpian to touch, grope, fr. grpan to gripe. See Gripe.] 1. To feel with or use the hands; to handle. [Obs.]

2. To search or attempt to find something in the dark, or, as a blind person, by feeling; to move about hesitatingly, as in darkness or obscurity; to feel one's way, as with the hands, when one can not see.

We grope for the wall like the blind.

Is. lix. 10.

To grope a little longer among the miseries and sensualities ot a worldly life.

Buckminster.

Grope, v. t. 1. To search out by feeling in the dark; as, we groped our way at midnight.

2. To examine; to test; to sound. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Felix gropeth him, thinking to have a bribe.

Genevan Test. (Acts xxiv. ).

Grop"er (?), n. One who gropes; one who feels his way in the dark, or searches by feeling.

Grop"ing-ly, adv. In a groping manner.

||Gros (?), n. [F. See Gross.] A heavy silk with a dull finish; as, ||gros de Naples; gros de Tours.

Gros"beak (?), n. [Gross + beak: cf. F. gros-bec.] (Zoˆl.) One of various species of finches having a large, stout beak. The common European grosbeak or hawfinch is Coccothraustes vulgaris.

Among the best known American species are the rose-breasted (Habia Ludoviciana); the blue (Guiraca cúrulea); the pine (Pinicola enucleator); and the evening grosbeak. See Hawfinch, and Cardinal grosbeak, Evening grosbeak, under Cardinal and Evening. [Written also grossbeak.]

||Grosch"en (?), n. [G.] A small silver coin and money of account of ||Germany, worth about two cents. It is not included in the new ||monetary system of the empire.

Gros"grain` (?), a. [F. Cf. Grogram.] Of a coarse texture; -- applied to silk with a heavy thread running crosswise.

Gross (?), a. [Compar. Grosser (&?;); superl. Grossest.] [F. gros, L. grossus, perh. fr. L. crassus thick, dense, fat, E. crass, cf. Skr. grathita tied together, wound up, hardened. Cf. Engross, Grocer, Grogram.] 1. Great; large; bulky; fat; of huge size; excessively large. "A gross fat man." Shak.

A gross body of horse under the Duke.

Milton.

2. Coarse; rough; not fine or delicate.

3. Not easily aroused or excited; not sensitive in perception or feeling; dull; witless.

Tell her of things that no gross ear can hear.

Milton.

4. Expressing, or originating in, animal or sensual appetites; hence, coarse, vulgar, low, obscene, or impure.

The terms which are delicate in one age become gross in the next.

Macaulay.

5. Thick; dense; not attenuated; as, a gross medium.

6. Great; palpable; serious; vagrant; shameful; as, a gross mistake; gross injustice; gross negligence.

7. Whole; entire; total; without deduction; as, the gross sum, or gross amount, the gross weight; -- opposed to net.

Gross adventure (Law) the loan of money upon bottomry, i. e., on a mortgage of a ship. -- Gross average (Law), that kind of average which falls upon the gross or entire amount of ship, cargo, and freight; -- commonly called general average. Bouvier. Burrill. -- Gross receipts, the total of the receipts, before they are diminished by any deduction, as for expenses; -- distinguished from net profits. Abbott. -- Gross weight the total weight of merchandise or goods, without deduction for tare, tret, or waste; -- distinguished from neat, or net, weight.

Gross, n. [F. gros (in sense 1), grosse (in sense 2). See Gross, a.] 1. The main body; the chief part, bulk, or mass. "The gross of the enemy." Addison.

For the gross of the people, they are considered as a mere herd of cattle.

Burke.

2. sing. & pl. The number of twelve dozen; twelve times twelve; as, a gross of bottles; ten gross of pens.

Advowson in gross (Law), an advowson belonging to a person, and not to a manor. -- A great gross, twelve gross; one hundred and forty-four dozen. -- By the gross, by the quantity; at wholesale. -- Common in gross. (Law) See under Common, n. -- In the gross, In gross, in the bulk, or the undivided whole; all parts taken together.

Gross"beak` (?), n. (Zoˆl.) See Grosbeak.

Gross"-head`ed (?), a. Thick- skulled; stupid.

Gross`i*fi*ca"tion (?), n. [Gross + L. ficare (in comp.) to make. See - fy.] 1. The act of making gross or thick, or the state of becoming so.

2. (Bot.) The swelling of the ovary of plants after fertilization. Henslow.

Gross"ly, adv. In a gross manner; greatly; coarsely; without delicacy; shamefully; disgracefully.

Gross"ness, n. The state or quality of being gross; thickness; corpulence; coarseness; shamefulness.

Abhor the swinish grossness that delights to wound the' ear of delicacy.

Dr. T. Dwight.

Gros"su*lar (?), a. [NL. grossularius, from Grossularia a subgenus of Ribes, including the gooseberry, fr. F. groseille. See Gooseberry.] Pertaining too, or resembling, a gooseberry; as, grossular garnet.

Gros"su*lar, n. [See Grossular, a.] (Min.) A translucent garnet of a pale green color like that of the gooseberry; -- called also grossularite.

||Gros`su*la"ria (?), n. [NL. See Grossular.] (Min.) Same as Grossular.

Gros"su*lin (?), n. [See Grossular.] (Chem.) A vegetable jelly, resembling pectin, found in gooseberries (Ribes Grossularia) and other fruits.

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Grot (grt), n. [F. grotte, It. grotta. See Grotto.] A grotto. [Poetic] Milton.

Grot, Grote (&?;), n. A groat. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Gro*tesque" (gr*tsk"), a. [F., fr. It. grottesco, fr. grotta grotto. See Grotto.] Like the figures found in ancient grottoes; grottolike; wildly or strangely formed; whimsical; extravagant; of irregular forms and proportions; fantastic; ludicrous; antic. "Grotesque design." Dryden. "Grotesque incidents." Macaulay.

Gro*tesque, n. 1. A whimsical figure, or scene, such as is found in old crypts and grottoes. Dryden.

2. Artificial grotto-work.

Gro*tesque"ly, adv. In a grotesque manner.

Gro*tesque"ness, n. Quality of being grotesque.

Grot"to (grt"t), n.; pl. Grottoes (-tz). [Formerly grotta, fr. It. grotta, LL. grupta, fr. L. crypta a concealed subterranean passage, vault, cavern, Gr. kry`pth, fr. krypto`s concealed, fr. kry`ptein to conceal. Cf. Grot, Crypt.] A natural covered opening in the earth; a cave; also, an artificial recess, cave, or cavernlike apartment.

Grot"to-work` (?), n. Artificial and ornamental rockwork in imitation of a grotto. Cowper.

Ground (ground), n. [OE. ground, grund, AS. grund; akin to D. grond, OS., G., Sw., & Dan. grund, Icel. grunnr bottom, Goth. grundus (in composition); perh. orig. meaning, dust, gravel, and if so perh. akin to E. grind.] 1. The surface of the earth; the outer crust of the globe, or some indefinite portion of it.

There was not a man to till the ground.

Gen. ii. 5.

The fire ran along upon the ground.

Ex. ix. 23.

Hence: A floor or pavement supposed to rest upon the earth.

2. Any definite portion of the earth's surface; region; territory; country. Hence: A territory appropriated to, or resorted to, for a particular purpose; the field or place of action; as, a hunting or fishing ground; a play ground.

From . . . old Euphrates, to the brook that parts Egypt from Syrian ground.

Milton.

3. Land; estate; possession; field; esp. (pl.), the gardens, lawns, fields, etc., belonging to a homestead; as, the grounds of the estate are well kept.

Thy next design is on thy neighbor's grounds.

Dryden. 4.

4. The basis on which anything rests; foundation. Hence: The foundation of knowledge, belief, or conviction; a premise, reason, or datum; ultimate or first principle; cause of existence or occurrence; originating force or agency; as, the ground of my hope.

5. (Paint. & Decorative Art) (a) That surface upon which the figures of a composition are set, and which relieves them by its plainness, being either of one tint or of tints but slightly contrasted with one another; as, crimson Bowers on a white ground. See Background, Foreground, and Middle-ground. (b) In sculpture, a flat surface upon which figures are raised in relief. (c) In point lace, the net of small meshes upon which the embroidered pattern is applied; as, Brussels ground. See Brussels lace, under Brussels.

6. (Etching) A gummy composition spread over the surface of a metal to be etched, to prevent the acid from eating except where an opening is made by the needle.

7. (Arch.) One of the pieces of wood, flush with the plastering, to which moldings, etc., are attached; -- usually in the plural.

Grounds are usually put up first and the plastering floated flush with them.

8. (Mus.) (a) A composition in which the bass, consisting of a few bars of independent notes, is continually repeated to a varying melody. (b) The tune on which descants are raised; the plain song. Moore (Encyc.).

On that ground I'll build a holy descant.

Shak.

9. (Elec.) A conducting connection with the earth, whereby the earth is made part of an electrical circuit.