Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Groveling |
GrovelingAdjective1. Totally submissive. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "groveling" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1350. (references) |
Synonyms: GrovelingSynonyms: cringing (adj), grovelling (adj), wormlike (adj), wormy (adj). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Improbity | Contemptible, unrespectable, abject, mean, shabby, little, paltry, dirty, scurvy, scabby, sneaking, groveling, scrubby, rascally, pettifogging; beneath one. |
Servility | Adjective: servile, obsequious; supple,supple as a glove; soapy, oily, pliant, cringing, abased, dough-faced, fawning, slavish, groveling, sniveling, mealy-mouthed; beggarly, sycophantic, parasitical; abject, prostrate, down on ones marrowbones; base, mean, sneaking; crouching; Verb: |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Groveling |
| English words defined with "groveling": Mean-spirited. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "groveling": sycophant. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "groveling": grovel. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | I haven't worked that out yet. But I'm sure groveling will be involved (The American President; writing credit: Aaron Sorkin.) I'd rather go in the store and see all the salespeople groveling and sucking up to you. (Designing Women; writing credit: Poul Thomsen) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title |
Books | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Author | Quotation |
Tyron Edwards | True humility is not an abject, groveling, self-despising spirit; it is but a right estimate of ourselves as God sees us. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | SYCOPHANT, n. One who approaches Greatness on his belly so that he may not be commanded to turn and be kicked. He is sometimes an editor. As the lean leech, its victim found, is pleased To fix itself upon a part diseased Till, its black hide distended with bad blood, It drops to die of surfeit in the mud, So the base sycophant with joy descries His neighbor's weak spot and his mouth applies, Gorges and prospers like the leech, although, Unlike that reptile, he will not let go. Gelasma, if it paid you to devote Your talent to the service of a goat, Showing by forceful logic that its beard Is more than Aaron's fit to be revered; If to the task of honoring its smell Profit had prompted you, and love as well, The world would benefit at last by you And wealthy malefactors weep anew -- Your favor for a moment's space denied And to the nobler object turned aside. Is't not enough that thrifty millionaires Who loot in freight and spoliate in fares, Or, cursed with consciences that bid them fly To safer villainies of darker dye, Forswearing robbery and fain, instead, To steal (they call it "cornering") our bread May see you groveling their boots to lick And begging for the favor of a kick? Still must you follow to the bitter end Your sycophantic disposition's trend, And in your eagerness to please the rich Hunt hungry sinners to their final ditch? In Morgan's praise you smite the sounding wire, And sing hosannas to great Havemeyher! What's Satan done that him you should eschew? He too is reeking rich -- deducting you. |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Language | Translations for "groveling"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
French | rampant. (various references) | |
German | kriechend (crawling, creeping, cringing, slow moving, truckling, worming). (various references) | |
Hungarian | csúszó-mászó (grovelling, slimy, sneaky). (various references) | |
Italian | vile (base, caitiff, cowardly, dastard, filthy, grovelling, ignoble, low, mean, scurvy, sneaking, vile, worthless), strisciante (creeping, cringing, grovelling, reptant, unctuous), abietto (abject, base, degraded, despicable, grovelling, low, unrighteous, vile). (various references) | |
Pig Latin | ovelinggray.(various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | gmizav (reptile), koji puzi (crawler). (various references) | |
Turkish | rezil (abject, contemptible, crud, dirty, dishonorable, dishonourable, disreputable, flagitious, flagrant, grovelling, ignoble, ignominious, infamous, low down, outrageous, raffish, rascal, scandal, scandalous, scoundrel, shameful, sinner, stinking, sweep, vile, villainous), adi (abject, base, camp, campy, cheap jack, chintzy, coarse, coarse grained, common, common as dirt, commonplace, contemptible, dastardly, despicable, everyday, grovelling, gutter, hackneyed, jerkwater, little, low, low class, mean, measly, no class, one horse, ordinary, ornery, picayune, picayunish, poky, rubbishy, shoddy, slavish, sleazy, twopenny, twopenny-halfpenny, vile, vulgar, wormy, yellow dog), aşağılık (abject, base, baseness, contemptible, dirty, grovelling, ignoble, ignominious, inferiority, low down, lowness, mean, no class, no good, pettiness, petty, rascally, reptilian, scabby, scurvy, slavish, snotty, sordid, tinpot, unutterable, unworthy, vile, wicked, wormy). (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | proiecta, proiecti, proiectis, proiecto, proiectum, proiectus. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "groveling": grovelingly. (additional references) | |
| |
"Groveling" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: grooveline. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "groveling" (pronounced grô"vuling) |
| 5 | -v u l i ng | leveling, raveling, reveling, rivaling, shriveling, swiveling, traveling, travelling, unraveling. |
| 4 | -u l i ng | ambling, assembling, babbling, backpedaling, baffling, barreling, battling, belittling, bicycling, boggling, bottling, bristling, bubbling, bugling, bumbling, bundling, bungling, bustling, cackling, canceling, cancelling, channeling, chortling, circling, coddling, commingling, counseling, cradling, crippling, crumbling, cycling, dabbling, dangling, dazzling, Dialing, disabling, disgruntling, dismantling, doubling, dribbling, drizzling, dwindling, embezzling, empaneling, enabling, encircling, entitling, equaling, fizzling, fondling, fumbling, funneling, gambling, giggling, gobbling, grueling, grumbling, gurgling, guzzling, haggling, hassling, hobbling, huddling, humbling, hurdling, hustling, idling, imperiling, initialing, intermingling, jiggling, jostling, juggling, labeling, mangling, marshaling, meddling, middling, mingling, mislabeling, modeling, mottling, muddling, mumbling, muscling, nibbling, paddling, paneling, parceling, pedaling, peddling, piddling, pummeling, puzzling, quadrupling, quarreling, quibbling, recycling, redoubling, refueling, remodeling, resembling, reshuffling, rippling, ruffling, rumbling, saddling, scrambling, scribbling, scuttling, settling, shuttling, signaling, signalling, singling, sizzling, spiraling, spiralling, squabbling, stapling, stenciling, strangling, struggling, stumbling, tabling, throttling, tingling, tinkling, toppling, totaling, totalling, toweling, trembling, tripling, troubling, tumbling, tunneling, twinkling, unsettling, waggling, warbling, wiggling, wobbling, wrangling, wrinkling, yodeling. |
| 3 | -l i ng | annealing, appalling, appealing, ailing, angling, assailing, bailing, baling, balling, bankrolling, beguiling, Belling, billing, blackmailing, boiling, Bolling, bowling, brawling, broiling, buckling, burgling, burling, cajoling, calling, Carling, ceiling, chilling, chronicling, chuckling, compelling, compiling, concealing, consoling, controlling, cooling, corralling, countervailing, coupling, cowling, crackling, crawling, cuddling, culling, curling, curtailing, darling, dawdling, dealing, decoupling, derailing, detailing, dispelling, dissembling, distilling, doling, drilling, drooling, duckling, dueling, dulling, dumpling, dwelling, earthling, emailing, enrolling, entailing, entangling, excelling, expelling, extolling, failing, falling, feeling, felling, fiddling, filing, filling, flailing, fledgling, foaling, foiling, fooling, forestalling, foretelling, fouling, foundling, freewheeling, fueling, fuelling, fulfilling, galling, grappling, Grayling, grilling, groundling, growling, hailing, handling, hauling, healing, heckling, helling, hilling, holing, howling, hurling, hurtling, inhaling, inkling, installing, instilling, jailing, Keeling, killing, kindling, kneeling, lolling, Lulling, mailing, Marling, Melling, milling, mishandling, misspelling, mothballing, mulling, nailing, needling, nestling, nonruling, oiling, outselling, overbilling, overhauling, overkilling, overruling, overselling, panhandling, paralleling, parboiling, paroling, patrolling, pearling, peeling, pickling, piling, Pilling, Pindling, poling, polling, pooling, prevailing, profiling, propelling, prowling, pulling, quelling, quilling, Quisling, railing, rambling, rankling, rappelling, rattling, rebelling, recalling, reconciling, reeling, regaling, rekindling, repealing, repelling, rescheduling, reselling, retailing, retelling, retooling, revealing, ridiculing, Riesling, rifling, rilling, roiling, rolling, rototilling, ruling, rustling, sailing, sampling, Sandling, sapling, scaling, scheduling, Schilling, schooling, scowling, sealing, seedling, Seeling, selling, shelling, shilling, shoveling, shuffling, sibling, skilling, smelling, smiling, smuggling, snarling, Snelling, snowballing, sparkling, Sparling, spelling, spilling, spoiling, sprawling, sprinkling, squealing, stalling, starling, startling, stealing, sterling, stifling, stockpiling, stonewalling, storytelling, straddling, strickling, stripling, strolling, styling, suckling, surveilling, swashbuckling, swelling, swilling, swindling, swirling, tackling, tailing, tangling, telling, thrilling, Tilling, toddling, toggling, toiling, tolling, tooling, trailing, trampling, trickling, trifling, trilling, trolling, twiddling, twirling, unappealing, unavailing, unbundling, underling, underselling, unfailing, unfeeling, unfurling, unsmiling, untangling, unveiling, unwilling, veiling, waffling, wailing, walling, weakling, welling, whaling, wheeling, whirling, whistling, whittling, wholesaling, wiling, willing, wrestling, yearling, yelling. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "e-g-g-i-l-n-o-r-v" | |
-2 letters: gloving, loggier, niggler, overing, verging. | |
-3 letters: eloign, eringo, ginger, glover, goring, govern, gringo, grovel, ignore, leggin, legion, legong, linger, logger, loggie, logier, longer, loving, neroli, niggle, ogling, region, renvoi, roving, voling. | |
-4 letters: eloin, enrol, envoi, ervil, genro, giron, given, giver, glove, going, goner, gorge, grego, groin, grove, ingle, irone, levin, liger, liner, lingo. | |
| Words containing the letters "e-g-g-i-l-n-o-r-v" | |
+1 letter: grovelling. | |
+2 letters: grovelingly, overgilding. | |
+3 letters: overlighting. | |
+4 letters: overindulging, overslaughing. | |
+5 letters: overregulating. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Quotations: Familiar 7. Quotations: Non-fiction 8. Translations: Modern | 9. Translations: Ancient 10. Derivations 11. Rhymes 12. Anagrams | 13. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.