Groped

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To feel about or search blindly with the hands often due to lack of sight or certainty ; to touch someone in a sexual manner without their consent
2. To try to find or examine something by uncertain or hesitating hand movements, typically in the dark ; to make an unwelcome physical approach towards someone, especially in a sexual way
3. To reach or explore by uncertain tactile movement, often when vision is impaired or absent ; to touch another person improperly and without permission, especially in a sexual context

Etymology: "Groped" is the past tense and past participle of "grope," which comes from Middle English "gropien," itself from Old English "grāpian." The Old English verb is related to "grīpan," the source of modern English "gripe," so the idea of seizing and holding sits at the root of a word now used for blind feeling about. The shared ancestry is visible in another modern word. "Grip" is closely connected to this family, so "grope" and "grip" are relatives that drifted apart in meaning: one kept the sense of closing the hand on something, while the other settled into the sense of searching by touch when you cannot see. The sense of groping as a blind, fumbling search follows naturally from reaching out with the hands in the dark.

Synonyms: searched, fumbled, groped around

Antonyms: found, discovered