I. ˈgrənt verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English grunten, gronten, from Old English grunnettan, freq. of grunian, grunnian; of imitative origin like Old High German grunnizōn to grunt, grunzen to grunt, Old Norse krytja to murmur, Latin grunnire (Old Latin grundire ) to grunt, Greek gry grunt, gryzein to grunt, grumble
intransitive verb
1.
a. : to make the natural throat noise of a hog
b. : to make a similar sound
ferries grunting … on the river — Robert Henderson
only grunted in answer — Kenneth Roberts
2. dialect : to groan and complain : grumble
transitive verb
1. : to express with a grunt
grunted what might have been assent — S.E.White
grunted his approval — Hugh Walpole
2. : to utter in a short, sharp, or surly manner
grunted a few ungracious words in reply
II. noun
( -s )
1.
a. : the deep short sound characteristic of a hog
b. : a similar sound
a grunt of satisfaction — Sherwood Anderson
gave an offended grunt — Carolyn Hannay
2.
[so called from the noise it makes when taken from the water]
: any of numerous chiefly tropical marine percoid fishes of the family Pomadasidae related to the snappers — see french grunt , gray grunt , white grunt , yellow grunt
3.
[so called from the noise it makes when steaming]
chiefly New England : a dessert made by dropping biscuit dough on top of boiling berries and covering and steaming
blackberry grunt
4.
[probably so called from the noise the helper emits under the load]
: a groundman who assists in the erection of power lines
[s]grunt.jpg[/s] [
grunt 2
]
III. noun
1. : a United States army or marine foot soldier especially in the Vietnam war
2. : one who does routine unglamorous work