Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “grasp” come from?

Grasp comes from Middle English graspen, from Old English grǣpsan, from Proto-Germanic graipisōną, meaning to seize or grip.

grasp (English): To grip; to take hold, particularly with the...

Definitions

  1. To grip; to take hold, particularly with the...

Ancestry of “grasp”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishgraspen—
2Old English*grǣpsian—

Words derived from “grasp”

  • grasping
  • graspable
  • ungraspable
  • grasper
  • ungraspability
  • graspingly
  • graspeth
  • graspest
  • graspability
  • graspless
  • regrasp
  • graspingness
  • ungraspably
  • foregrasp
  • begrasp
  • ungrasp
  • graspful
  • engrasp
Every word from Old English *grǣpsian →