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Origin and history of gripping

gripping(adj.)

"grasping the emotions," 1896, figurative use of present-participle adjective from grip (v.).

also from 1896

Entries linking to gripping

grip(v.)

Old English grippan "to grip, seize, obtain" (class I strong verb; past tense grap, past participle gripen), from West Germanic *greipanan (source also of Old High German gripfen "to rob," Old English gripan "to seize;" see gripe (v.)). Related: Gripped; gripping. French gripper "to seize," griffe "claw" are Germanic loan-words.

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    torsion
    the bowels," from Old French torsion "colic" (early 14c.), from Late Latin torsionem (nominative torsio) "a wringing or gripping...
    tenacity
    ténacité (14c.) and directly from Latin tenacitas "an act of holding fast," from tenax (genitive tenacis) "holding fast, gripping...
    jaw
    Jaws as "holding and gripping part of an appliance" is from mid-15c.; figuratively, of time, death, defeat, etc., from 1560s...
    gripe
    Figurative sense of "complain, grouse" is first attested 1932, probably from earlier meaning "produce a gripping pain in...
    cleat
    The athletic cleat, for gripping, is attested from 1904....
    squeeze
    c. 1600, "press forcibly" (transitive), perhaps an alteration of quease (Middle English quisen), from Old English cwysan "to squeeze," a word of unknown origin, perhaps imitative (compare German quetschen "to squeeze"). It perhaps also has been altered by influence of many words
    prig
    "a conceited, narrow-minded pragmatical person; a dull, precise person; one who cultivates or affects propriety and offends or bores others," 1753, originally in reference to theological scruples (1704), a word of unknown origin. It could be related to earlier appearances of the
    twinge
    1540s, "a pinch, a nipping," from obsolete verb twinge "to pinch, tweak," from Old English twengan "to pinch," from Proto-Germanic *twangjan (source also of Old Frisian thwinga, Old Norse þvinga, Danish tvinge, Dutch dwingen, Old High German thwingan, German zwingen "to compel, f
    seize
    mid-13c., seisen, "take possession, take possession of" (land, goods, etc.) by force or authority, from Old French seisir "to take possession of, take by force; put in possession of, bestow upon" (Modern French saisir), from Late Latin sacire (8c.), which generally is held to be
    clutch
    Old English clyccan "bring together, bend (the fingers), clench," from PIE *klukja- (source also of Swedish klyka "clamp, fork;" related to cling). Meaning "to grasp" is early 14c.; that of "to seize with the claws or clutches" is from late 14c. Sense of "hold tightly and close"

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