Grave , n. [AS. gr?f, fr. grafan to dig; akin to D. & OS. graf, G. grab, Icel. gröf, Russ. grob' grave, coffin. See Grave to carve.]
An excavation in the earth as
a place of burial; also, any place of
interment; a tomb; a sepulcher. Hence: Death; destruction.
He bad lain in the grave four days.
John xi. 17. Grave wax, adipocere.
Grave , v. i. To write or delineate on hard substances, by means of incised lines; to practice engraving.
Grave , v. t. [imp.
Graved (grāvd); p. p. Graven
(grāv"'n) or Graved; p. pr. & vb.
n. Graving.]
[AS.
grafan to dig, grave, engrave; akin to OFries. greva, D. graven, G. graben, OHG. & Goth.
graban, Dan. grabe, Sw.
gräfva, Icel. grafa, but prob. not to Gr. gra`fein to write, E.
graphic. Cf. Grave, n.,
Grove, n.]
1. To dig. [Obs.] Chaucer.
He hath graven and digged up a pit.
Ps. vii. 16 (Book of Common Prayer).
2. To carve or cut,
as letters or figures, on some hard
substance; to engrave.
Thou shalt take two onyx
stones, and grave on them the
names of the children of Israel.
Ex. xxviii. 9. 3. To carve out
or give shape to, by cutting with a chisel; to sculpture; as, to grave an image.
With gold men may the
hearte grave.
Chaucer. 4. To impress deeply (on the mind);
to fix indelibly.
O! may they graven in thy heart
remain.
Prior. 5. To entomb; to
bury. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Lie full low, graved in the hollow ground.
Shak.
Grave , a.
[Compar. Graver
(grāv"&etilde;r);
superl. Gravest.]
[F., fr.
L. gravis heavy; cf. It. & Sp. grave heavy, grave. See Grief.]
1. Of great
weight; heavy; ponderous. [Obs.]
His shield grave and great.
Chapman. 2. Of importance; momentous; weighty; influential; sedate; serious; -- said of character, relations, etc.;
as, grave deportment, character,
influence, etc.
Most potent, grave, and reverend seigniors.
Shak.
A grave and prudent law, full of moral equity.
Milton. 3. Not light or gay;
solemn; sober; plain; as, a
grave color; a grave face.
4. (Mus.) (a) Not acute or
sharp; low; deep; -- said of sound; as,
a grave note or key.
The
thicker the cord or string, the more grave is the note or tone.
Moore (Encyc. of Music). (b) Slow and solemn in
movement.
Grave accent.
(Pron.) See the Note under Accent, n.,
2.
Syn. -- Solemn; sober; serious; sage; staid; demure; thoughtful; sedate; weighty; momentous; important. -- Grave,
Sober, Serious, Solemn.
Sober supposes the absence of all exhilaration of spirits, and is opposed to gay
or flighty; as, sober thought. Serious
implies considerateness or reflection, and is opposed to jocose or sportive; as, serious and important concerns. Grave denotes a state of mind, appearance, etc., which results from the pressure of weighty interests, and is opposed to
hilarity of feeling or vivacity of manner; as, a
qrave remark; qrave attire. Solemn is applied to a case in which
gravity is carried to its highest point; as, a
solemn admonition; a solemn promise.
Grave (?), v. t. (Naut.) To clean, as a vessel's bottom, of barnacles, grass, etc., and pay it over with pitch; -- so called because graves or greaves was formerly used for this purpose.
-grave (?). A final syllable signifying a ruler, as in landgrave, margrave. See Margrave.
Hear it pronounced