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Great vs Grate: Do These Mean The Same? When Do We Use Each?

Great vs Grate: Do These Mean The Same? When Do We Use Each?

The term “Great” has many pronouns meaning it represents different text contents which includes adjectives, nouns and adverbs. However the term for “Grate” is a verb and noun, which has the same pronunciation but different meaning.

The word “great” is an adjective and means much more than moderate or common in size, volume, mass value, or importance. The word “grate” is a verb and means to grind, scrape, or irritate. We use “grate” mainly in cooking terminology and “great” as an adjective to indicate quality above the average.

Keep reading to learn the meaning and origin of the word “Great vs Grate”, sentences and when using the word, and phrases that are commonly used in different contexts.

Great: Definition

great sign in purple background

Using the word “great” as an adjective is to describe something that is very huge. “Great” is more formal than huge or you can describe someone who is successful and famous for their action, productivity,  knowledge, or skill as great.

Using the word “great” as a noun is used as part of the name of a certain species of plant or animal when there is another species of the same plant or animal which is very small and has different bio characteristics functions. Using the word “great” as an adverb is excellent or outstanding.

Grate: Definition

Using “grate” as a noun is a frame of metal bars for holding fuel consumption when burning, as in a wood fireplace, furnace, gas stove or a framework of parallel or semi crossed bars, used as a partition, shield guard, cover net.

Using the word “grate” as a verb is to make a loud sharp rasping noise, such as scraping or to scrape or rub harshly, as one item upon another.

The Origin of the Word

“Great” is one of the English Oxford Dictionary’s one thousand most used frequent words, it may be used as an adjective, adverb, and a noun occasionally. “Great” is a very Old English word derived from the German standard word “grautaz” meaning “coarse,” “massive.” It took heavy over the function of midpoint English “mickle,” and is now itself mostly superseded by “big” and “huge” except in reference to non-material items. In the sense of “excellent,” “wonderful”, the use of the word “great” is verified in the year 1848.

However “Great White Way Broadway” from New York City in1901 with connection to brilliant street illumination. The Great Lakes of North America high tide was called by 1726, or  1690s. “Great Spirit of the North American Asians,” 1703, basically translates “ojibwe gitchi manitou.” The Great War basically 1887 indicated to the Napoleonic Wars, then later in 1914 to what is called The World War I.

“The Great War” was until France slump and the British remained ahead to call the First World War to approve  themselves that they are now included in the war of the same emanation.  Already in verb format, Old Latin English “greatian” to become an enlargement,” Midpoint English greaten “to become very large, huge, increase size, grow; become evidently pregnant,” which became archaic after the 17th  century.

“Grate” has been pre-owned since the fifteenth century by the meaning “cagework” through a door or window, from the Latin word “cratis” which means straw-plaited or hurdle. In the fourteenth century, grate also was implemented to be used as the meaning for scraped, scratched, and introduced by the Old French word grater. In the late 14th century, “grill for cooking;” early 15th century, “iron bars rods or cagework across a door or window,” from Anglo-Latin (middle 14th century ), Old French grate or direct from the Gothic Latin “grata.” As a verb means “to fit within a grate,” from middle 15th century. Relating to Grated or grating.

Synonyms of “great” and meanings

  1.     Magnificent is defined as a grand or noble in thought or accomplishment.
  2.      Wonderful is defined as an amazing, astonishing, excellent or enjoyable person, thing or event.
  3.      Tremendous is defined as outstanding.
  4.      Big is defined as of considerable size, number, quantity, magnitude, or large
  5.      Grand is defined as having a higher rank than others of the same category.
  6.      Prominent defined to attract attention from its size or position; conspicuous.

Synonyms of grate and meanings

  1. Firebox defines a chamber, such as the furnace of a steam locomotive, in which fuel is burned.
  2. Scrape defines removal (an outer layer, for example) from a surface by forceful strokes of an edged or rough instrument.
  3. Stove is an apparatus in which electricity or fuel is used to furnish heat, as for cooking or warmth.
  4. Rasp defines scraping or rubbing with or as with a file.
  5. Grating is defined as nautical, in  plural format is a powerful wooden lattice used to wrap a hatch, introduce light and air, also a portable lattice used for the floor of ships and an optical system of nearby equidistant and parallel lines or rod bars, vertical lines ruled on a shining surface, used for generating spectra by diffraction.

Phrases and Sentences Using the Word “Great”

  • Theodore Parker once spoke that a great novel that came from a great intellectual is a ship of understanding, deep traveling within the truth and style.
  • William Shakespeare once said that small cheer and great welcome makes a merry feast.
  • This is a great day for boat sailing, there is a good warm breeze blowing, and the sun is shining.
  • Nora Roberts once wrote that love and magic have a great deal in common, they enrich the mind, soul, delight the heart, and they both need to take practice.
  • François de La Rochefoucauld once agreed that the glory of great makes must always be measured against the means they have used to acquire and earn it.
  • The man has faced a great deal of adversity in his lifetime but has always overcome even the most difficult challenges in his life.
  • The woman’s success was a great satisfaction to him.
  • Later, those from many other countries flocked to China because they were attracted by reports of great economic opportunities and religious and political freedom and contracted COVID-19.
  • This morning, I heard the great news of the new arrival in our family.
  • Great minds think alike.
  • How great is our God, sing with me.
  • He would soon become a captain and certainly perhaps a great admiral.
  • As we moved toward that new future, it is a great tragedy that the experiences of all the people’s situations of the past are lost within themselves.

grate word in the dictionary

How to use “Grate” in a Sentence

To ensure that you are using “grate” in the right context, it should be used when shredding, scraping, grinding something or breaking into small pieces by rubbing against something rough.

The important thing to remember is that “grate” is not only a verb but a noun also and has a different meaning also.

“Grate” may also be used as a framework of parallel or latticed bars rods for blocking an opening and framework of metal bars rods used to hold fuel or food on a stove, furnace, or fireplace.

Ultimately, you should remember that this word is always used in different text content and to imply different functions.

List of Examples of the Word Grate Used in Sentences

  1. The usual format of deliberate fireplace is a  fire grate placed under an arch tunnel and communicating with the setup shaft by an inclined stray.
  2. The size of the grate varies with the requirements of the ventilation, but from 6 to 10 feet.
  3. I met the servant that came to take water for his old master, and the master buckets were grated together in the same water well.
  4. The maximum rate of explosion may be the measurement of coal per square meter foot of grate per hour second and in irregular cases even a greater rate than it had been.
  5. Sometimes the purpose of a gas-producer item is obtained in a very transparent manner by lowering the grate of a traditional fireplace with much more layers of coal 4 or 5 feet.
  6. The fuel is burned on the grate of the inner firebox.
  7. For coughs, grate a clove of garlic and mix with honey.
  8. The important point of the room is the new marble style features for the fireplace with living flame opening grate fire.
  9. You can grate ginger root steam into a cup of boiling hot water or add a lot of chopped ginger pieces to your food.

The Difference Between “Great” vs “Grate”

As nouns, the difference between “Grate and Great” is that grate is a horizontal steel griller where water, ash, or small objects can go through or fall, while very larger objects cannot while great is a person of major accomplishment and significance.

As an adjective the difference characteristic “Grate vs Great” is that grate is no longer in use serving satisfaction; pleasing while great is huge, large and big amounts.

Conclusion

chef grates a carrot

So as you can see, “Great” and “Grate” are pronounced the same but imply and have different forms of text content.

Although you won’t hear it being said very often these days, it once was quite a popular phrase in the English language and one that carried a lot of weight when it came to different text content descriptions.