grating
adjective · noun
Simple meaning
Harsh and unpleasant.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
graytingSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈɡɹeɪtɪŋ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adjective
typically of a voice
Harsh and unpleasant.
Abrasive; tending to annoy.
noun
A barrier that has parallel or crossed bars blocking a passage but admitting air
A frame of iron bars to hold a fire
Optical device consisting of a surface with many parallel grooves in it; disperses a beam of light (or other electromagnetic radiation) into its wavelengths to produce its spectrum
An optical system of close equidistant and parallel lines or bars, especially lines ruled on a polished surface, used for producing spectra by diffraction.
The sound made by something that grates against something else.
The loose material that comes from something being grated.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B2 · Upper Intermediate (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Formality
- Technical
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: (typically of a voice) Harsh and unpleasant.
Used this way, grating is a reasonably familiar word with a faintly unfavourable edge. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Slightly negative
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Moderate
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Critical or judgemental
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Nearby words
- cacophonous , rarer, so it draws attention
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Barrier / optical
Sound
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
A frame of iron bars to hold a fire.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
A relatively small amount of money given for services rendered (as by a waiter).
Feeling or showing gratitude.
With appreciation.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Optical device consisting of a surface with many parallel grooves in it.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: harsh and unpleasant
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.