gnash
gnash Lexical Profile
gnash Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To grind or strike (one's teeth) together, especially as a sign of anger, anguish, or frustration.
"The defeated coach could only pace the sidelines and gnash his teeth as the final seconds ticked away."
To strike or grind together noisily (of teeth or jaws).
"His teeth gnashed in the bitter cold while he waited for the delayed train."
• noun
An act or sound of grinding or striking the teeth together, typically in anger or distress.
"With a fierce gnash of its jaws, the trapped badger lunged at the cage bars."
Word Nuance & Usage
The initial 'g' is silent, making 'gnash' a homophone of 'nash'. It is used almost exclusively with 'teeth' as its object (or subject in intransitive use), often echoing the biblical phrase 'weeping and gnashing of teeth' to convey intense frustration, anguish, or rage.
• Rhymes for gnash
Word Origin & Etymology
Entered Middle English in the late 15th century, modified from earlier 'gnasten', which came from Old Norse 'gnasta' (to clash or gnash), of imitative origin.