grippen

Middle English

Alternative forms

• gryppen, gripen

Etymology

From Old English grippan, from Proto-Germanic *gripjaną. Cognates include Middle High German gripfen.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɡripən/

Verb

grippen

1. To grip or grab onto (and often to take away)
2. To confiscate or steal; to take forcibly.
3. (rare) To entrap; to find and take control of.
4. (rare) To find out about; to acquire knowledge or information about.
5. (rare) To torment or injure; to cause fear or sorrow.

Usage notes

This verb tends to supplant gripen later in the Middle English period.

Conjugation

Conjugation of grippen (weak in -ed)

infinitive	(to) grippen, grippe
	present tense	past tense
1st-person singular	grippe	gripped
2nd-person singular	grippest	grippedest
3rd-person singular	grippeth	gripped
subjunctive singular	grippe
imperative singular		—
plural1	grippen, grippe	grippeden, grippede
imperative plural	grippeth, grippe	—
participles	grippynge, grippende	gripped, ygripped

¹Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.

Descendants

• English: grip
• Scots: grip

References

• “grippen, v.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-11-22.