gripe

/ɡɹaɪp/

//ɡɹaɪp// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"gripe" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“gripe” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #36,587 in English word frequency and used as a verb.

#36,587
frequency rank, English
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To complain; to whine.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

gripe vs grit
60% similar
gripe vs guide
60% similar
gripe vs grove
60% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for gripe
PropertyValue
Headwordgripe
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ɡɹaɪp/
Letters5
Frequency rank#36,587
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “gripe” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). gripe lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for gripe is 5 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɡɹaɪp/. Corpus data places it at rank #36,587 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 7 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for gripe, with forms such as "ggripe", "girpe", and "griep". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "grit", "guide", "grove", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English gripen, from Old English grīpan, from Proto-Germanic *grīpaną, from Proto-Indo-European *gʰreyb- (“to grab, grasp”). Cognate with West Frisian gripe, Low German griepen, Dutch grijpen, German greifen, Danish gribe, Swedish gripa. See als… The correct English form is gripe, spelled G-R-I-P-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To complain; to whine.
  2. 2
    To annoy or bother.
  3. 3
    To tend to come up into the wind, as a ship which, when sailing close-hauled, requires constant labour at the helm.
  4. 4
    To pinch; to distress. Specifically, to cause pinching and spasmodic pain to the bowels of, as by the effects of certain purgative or indigestible substances.
  5. 5
    To suffer griping pains.
  6. 6
    To make a grab (to, towards, at or upon something).
  7. 7
    To seize or grasp.

Etymology

From Middle English gripen, from Old English grīpan, from Proto-Germanic *grīpaną, from Proto-Indo-European *gʰreyb- (“to grab, grasp”). Cognate with West Frisian gripe, Low German griepen, Dutch grijpen, German greifen, Danish gribe, Swedish gripa. See also grip, grope.

This word in other languages

quejarse(Español)se plaindre(Français)maulen(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ggripe,girpe,griep,grippe,grpie,grripe,rgipe

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of gripe - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ggripe1girpe2griep2grippe1grpie2grripe1rgipe2
Edit distance from "gripe"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "gripe"?
"gripe" is spelled G-R-I-P-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ɡɹaɪp/.
What does "gripe" mean?
As a verb, "gripe" means: To complain; to whine.
What words are commonly confused with "gripe"?
"gripe" is commonly confused with "grit", "guide", "grove". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "gripe"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "gripe" is /ɡɹaɪp/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "gripe"?
From Middle English gripen, from Old English grīpan, from Proto-Germanic *grīpaną, from Proto-Indo-European *gʰreyb- (“to grab, grasp”). Cognate with West Frisian gripe, Low German griepen, Dutch grijpen, German greifen, Danish gribe, Swedish grip... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “gripe”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is G-R-I-P-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ɡɹaɪp/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “grit” - see the side-by-side comparison. gripe vs grit
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list