grovel

verb

grov·​el ˈgrä-vᵊl  ˈgrə- 

groveled or grovelled; groveling or grovelling

intransitive verb

1

: to creep with the face to the ground : crawl

2

a

: to lie or creep with the body prostrate in token of subservience or abasement

groveled at the feet of the king

b

: to abase oneself

would not grovel for political advantage

3

: to give oneself over to what is base or unworthy : wallow

groveling in self-pity

groveler

ˈgrä-vᵊl-ər 

ˈgrə-

noun

grovelingly

ˈgrä-vᵊl-iŋ-lē 

ˈgrə-

adverb

Synonyms

• cower
• cringe
• quail

Examples of grovel in a Sentence

The peasants groveled before the king.

He had to grovel to get her to accept his apology.

He made a groveling apology to his girlfriend.

Recent Examples on the Web

Aren’t the most interesting people the ones who can’t make up their minds about their world, who sometimes sneer and sometimes grovel? —Jackson Arn, The New Yorker, 21 Nov. 2024

Park City–Salt Lake City remains the funniest option, after months of groveling from other cities. —Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 12 Sep. 2024

After the fallout of episode 7, plenty of dudes should be grovelling for forgiveness right now. —Alexandra Koster, refinery29.com, 7 Feb. 2024

Like many — including the groveling Rubio, Scott and Stefanik — Johnson was once a Trump critic. —Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 4 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from groveling prone, from groveling, adverb, from Middle English, from gruf, adverb, on the face (from Old Norse ā grūfu) + -ling

First Known Use

1552, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

grovel

verb

grov·​el ˈgräv-əl  ˈgrəv- 

groveled or grovelled; groveling or grovelling

-(ə-)liŋ

1

: to creep or lie face down on the ground (as in fear)

2

: to degrade oneself by behaving in an excessively submissive way : cringe

groveler noun

or groveller

-(ə-)lər