{
    "term": "grasp",
    "partOfSpeech": "verb",
    "ox5000": true,
    "cefr": "c1",
    "verbForms": {
        "presentSimple": {
            "iYouWeThey": "grasp",
            "heSheIt": "grasps"
        },
        "pastSimple": "grasped",
        "pastParticiple": "grasped",
        "ingForm": "grasping"
    },
    "definitions": [
        {
            "senseNumber": 1,
            "definition": "to take a strong hold of somebody/something",
            "sensetop": "grasp somebody/something",
            "cefr": "c1",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "He grasped my hand and shook it warmly."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Kay grasped him by the wrist."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Her hands were grasping at his coat."
                },
                {
                    "text": "She grasped him tightly by the wrist."
                },
                {
                    "text": "She grasped hold of the banister to support herself."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He grasped the pan by its handle."
                }
            ],
            "synonyms": "grip",
            "collocations": {
                "adverb": ["firmly", "tightly"],
                "preposition": ["at", "by"],
                "phrases": ["grasp hold of somebody/​something"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 2,
            "definition": "to understand something completely",
            "sensetop": "grasp somethinggrasp how, why, etc…grasp that…",
            "cefr": "c1",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "They failed to grasp the importance of his words.",
                    "contextForm": "grasp something"
                },
                {
                    "text": "She was unable to grasp how to do it.",
                    "contextForm": "grasp how, why, etc…"
                },
                {
                    "text": "It took him some time to grasp that he was now a public figure.",
                    "contextForm": "grasp that…"
                },
                {
                    "text": "It's a difficult concept for children to understand/​grasp."
                },
                {
                    "text": "By this time, engineers had grasped the basic principles of aerodynamics."
                },
                {
                    "text": "a means by which students can more easily grasp the basics of science"
                },
                {
                    "text": "Some of these concepts are very difficult to grasp."
                },
                {
                    "text": "She failed to grasp the significance of these facts."
                },
                {
                    "text": "I hadn't really grasped what they were talking about."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He was quick to grasp the basic principles."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He had not fully grasped the fact that he was the one who would pay for all this."
                }
            ],
            "collocations": {
                "adverb": ["fully", "not quite", "not really"],
                "verb + grasp": ["try to", "be unable to", "fail to"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 3,
            "definition": "to take an opportunity without hesitating and use it",
            "sensetop": "grasp a chance/an opportunity",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "I grasped the opportunity to work abroad."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to try all possible means to find a solution or some hope in a difficult or unpleasant situation, even though this seems very unlikely",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "I know I’m just clutching at straws here, but is it possible that the doctors are wrong?"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to deal with a difficult situation without hesitating",
            "labels": "(British English)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "The government now has the opportunity to grasp the nettle of prison reform."
                }
            ]
        }
    ],
    "pronunciations": {
        "uk": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ɡrɑːsp/",
                "audio": "gr/grasp/grasp__gb_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ɡrɑːsps/",
                "audio": "gr/grasp/grasps__gb_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ɡrɑːspt/",
                "audio": "gr/grasp/grasped__gb_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈɡrɑːspɪŋ/",
                "audio": "gr/grasp/grasping__gb_2.mp3"
            }
        ],
        "us": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ɡræsp/",
                "audio": "gr/grasp/grasp__us_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ɡræsps/",
                "audio": "gr/grasp/grasps__us_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ɡræspt/",
                "audio": "gr/grasp/grasped__us_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈɡræspɪŋ/",
                "audio": "gr/grasp/grasping__us_2.mp3"
            }
        ]
    },
    "wordOrigin": "late Middle English: perhaps related to grope."
}