Grieving

Part of speech: verb, adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈɡɹiːvɪŋ/

Definitions

1. The emotional state marked by deep sorrow often occurs after losing a loved one, but may also relate to significant life changes and feelings of loss in various contexts
2. Experiencing intense sadness or distress typically arises from the death of someone dear and can also emerge from other major life transitions or losses
3. The process of experiencing profound emotional distress typically follows the death of a significant person and may also arise from considerable life changes or losses

Etymology: "Grieving" is simply the present participle and gerund of "grieve", so its story is really the story of the verb. That verb reaches English through Old French "grever", meaning "to burden", which in turn comes from Latin "gravare", "to make heavy", built on the adjective "gravis", "heavy" or "grave". The earliest sense was physical weight, and the emotional sense grew out of that image of being weighed down. Languages show the same shift. Russian "tyagotit'", "to be a burden on, to oppress", belongs to the same family as "tyazholyy", "heavy", and "tuzhit'", "to experience grief". The English sense of sorrow thus rests on an old picture of a heavy load pressing on the spirit.

Synonyms: mourning, sorrowing, lamenting, wailing, weeping

Antonyms: celebrating, rejoicing, delighting, enjoying, cheering