1
: causing or characterized by severe pain, suffering, or sorrow
a grievous wound
a grievous loss
2
: oppressive, onerous
grievous costs of war
grievously
adverb
grievousness
noun
Synonyms
Examples of grievous in a Sentence
the grievous cost of war
He took a foolish financial risk and suffered a grievous loss.
Recent Examples on the Web
The defense has repeatedly accused investigators of making grievous mistakes, including losing videos of several interviews with witnesses.
—
Ron Wilkins, The Indianapolis Star, 4 Nov. 2024
The driver of the car panicked, tried to flee the scene, and in that process, ran over him again, and that caused [Shivam] the most grievous injuries.
—Carlton Reid, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024
One of Obama’s tasks leading up to Election Day is to persuade Black men that voting for Donald Trump would be a grievous mistake.
—Josh Feldman, NBC News, 21 Oct. 2024
One of them gave both me and my wife grievous sores.
—Jay Martel, The New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for grievous 
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Ron Wilkins, The Indianapolis Star, 4 Nov. 2024
The driver of the car panicked, tried to flee the scene, and in that process, ran over him again, and that caused [Shivam] the most grievous injuries.
—Carlton Reid, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024
One of Obama’s tasks leading up to Election Day is to persuade Black men that voting for Donald Trump would be a grievous mistake.
—Josh Feldman, NBC News, 21 Oct. 2024
One of them gave both me and my wife grievous sores.
—Jay Martel, The New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for grievous
Dictionary Entries Near grievous
Cite this Entry
“Grievous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grievous. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
grievous
adjective
griev·ous
ˈgrē-vəs 
1
: heavy entry 1 sense 2, severe
the grievous cost of war
2
: causing pain, suffering, or sorrow
a grievous wound
3
: serious sense 4, grave
a grievous mistake
grievously
adverb
grievousness
noun
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