groove

English

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groove

Wikipedia

Etymology

From Middle English grov, grove, groof, grofe (“cave; pit; mining shaft”), from Old English grōf (“trench, furrow, something dug”), from Proto-West Germanic *grōbu, from Proto-Germanic *grōbō (“groove, furrow”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrebʰ- (“to dig, scrape, bury”). Cognate with Dutch groef, groeve (“groove; pit, grave”), German Grube (“ditch, pit”), Norwegian grov (“brook, riverbed”), Serbo-Croatian grèbati (“scratch, dig”). Directly descended from Old English grafan (“to dig”). More at grave.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ɡɹuːv/

  • Audio (Southern England)

    (file)

• (US) IPA^(key): /ɡɹuv/
• Rhymes: -uːv

Noun

groove (plural grooves)

1. A long, narrow channel or depression; e.g., such a slot cut into a hard material to provide a location for an engineering component, a tyre groove, or a geological channel or depression.

   Antonym: ridge

2. A fixed routine.
   • 1859 December 13, Charles Dickens, “The Mortals in the House”, in Charles Dickens, editor, The Haunted House. The Extra Christmas Number of All the Year Round , volume II, London: C. Whiting, , →OCLC, page 4:

     Through these distresses, the Odd Girl was cheerful and exemplary. But within four hours after dark we had got into a supernatural groove, and the Odd Girl had seen “Eyes,” and was in hysterics.

   • 1873, John Morley, Rousseau:

     The gregarious trifling of life in the social groove.

   • 2011 October 23, Becky Ashton, “QPR 1 - 0 Chelsea”, in BBC Sport‎:

     His counterpart Neil Warnock got his tactics spot on as Chelsea struggled to get into any sort of groove in the first half.

3. The middle of the strike zone in baseball where a pitch is most easily hit.
4. (music) A pronounced, enjoyable rhythm.
   • 1979, “Rapper's Delight”, performed by The Sugarhill Gang:

     Now, what you hear is not a test, I'm rapping to the beat / And me, the groove, and my friends are gonna try to move your feet

   • 1983, Chris Barbosa, Ed Chisolm (lyrics and music), “Let the Music Play”, performed by Shannon:

     Let the music play / He won't get away / This groove he can't ignore

   • 1985, Stephen Bray, Madonna (lyrics and music), “Into the Groove”, in Like a Virgin, performed by Madonna:

     Get into the groove / Boy, you've got to prove / Your love to me / Get up on your feet / Yeah, step to the beat

5. (dated, informal) A good feeling (often as in the groove).
   • 2010, Jan Reid, Shawn Sahm, Texas Tornado: The Times and Music of Doug Sahm, page 57:

     How could he be expected to make music that put the audience in a groove, he reasoned, if he wasn't grooving himself?

6. (mining) A shaft or excavation.
7. (motor racing) A racing line, a path across the racing circuit's surface that a racecar will usually track on. (Note: There may be multiple grooves on any particular circuit or segment of circuit)

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

groove (third-person singular simple present grooves, present participle grooving, simple past and past participle grooved)

1. (transitive) To cut a groove or channel in; to form into channels or grooves; to furrow.
   • 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, chapter 37, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC, page 186:

     The path to my fixed purpose is laid with iron rails, whereon my soul is grooved to run.

2. (intransitive) To perform, dance to, or enjoy rhythmic music.

   I was just starting to groove to the band when we had to leave.

Derived terms

• grooved
• groover
• ungrooved

Translations

Anagrams

• go over, overgo

French

Etymology

Borrowed from English.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡʁuv/

Noun

groove m (plural grooves)

1. groove (fixed routine)

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from English.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɡɾub/
• Rhymes: -ub

Noun

groove m (plural grooves)

1. groove (music style)