All 26 Uses of
grave
in
A Death in the Family
- That's perfectly true, he said, gravely.†
Chpt 2gravely = in a serious and solemn manner
- It was not really anything of a separation, yet he was surprised to find that it seemed to him a grave one, perhaps because his business was grave, or because of the solemn hour.
Chpt 2 *grave = serious and solemn
- It was not really anything of a separation, yet he was surprised to find that it seemed to him a grave one, perhaps because his business was grave, or because of the solemn hour.
Chpt 2
- They gazed gravely into the eyes of the men on the ferry, and neither of them moved, or made any sign of salutation, until the craft was made fast.†
Chpt 3gravely = in a serious and solemn manner
- When Rufus arrived, all out of breath, he found her on a hard little couch in the living room, sitting carefully, not to rumple her long white-speckled black dress, and poring gravely through an issue of The Nation which she held a finger length before her thick glasses.†
Chpt 7
- She's an old, old lady,his father said gravely; and Ralph gravely and proudly concurred.†
Chpt 13
- She's an old, old lady,his father said gravely; and Ralph gravely and proudly concurred.†
Chpt 13
- He felt deeply idle and empty and at the same time gravely exhilarated, as if this were the morning of his birthday, except that this day seemed even more particularly his own day.†
Chpt 16
- "That's what my daddy says, one of them said, and the other said, "What you get for driving a auto when you're drunk, that's what my dad says, and the two of them looked gravely at the other boys, nodding, and at Rufus.†
Chpt 16
- Just a chance in a million, one of the older boys said gravely, and another gravely nodded.†
Chpt 16
- Just a chance in a million, one of the older boys said gravely, and another gravely nodded.†
Chpt 16
- I'm afraid not, Father, said Hannah, gravely.†
Chpt 17
- touch the rock with his hand, but sat with his hands hung between his knees and looked out over North Knoxville, hearing the restive assemblage of the train; and after there had been silence for a while, raised his head and looked up into the leaves and between the leaves into the broad stars, not smiling, but with his eyes more calm and grave and his mouth strong and more quiet, than Rufus had ever seen his eyes and his mouth; and as he watched his father's face, Rufus felt his father's hand settle, without groping or clumsiness, on the top of his bare head; it took his forehead and smoothed it, and pushed the hair backward from his forehead, and held the back of his head while Rufu†
Chpt 1
- over the whole side of the head, and drew Rufus' head quietly and strongly against the sharp cloth that covered his father's body, through which Rufus could feel the breathing ribs; then relinquished him, and Rufus sat upright, while the hand lay strongly on his shoulder, and he saw that his father's eyes had become still more clear and grave and that the deep lines around his mouth were satisfied; and looked up at what his father was so steadily looking at, at the leaves which silently breathed and at the stars which beat like hearts.†
Chpt 1
- Then it's very grave, Jay, she said very gently.†
Chpt 2
- Because of the strangeness of the hour, and the abrupt destruction of sleep, the necessity for action and its interruptive minutiae, the gravity of his errand, and a kind of weary exhilaration, both of them found it peculiarly hard to talk, though both particularly wanted to.†
Chpt 2
- He settled still more deeply, his eyes shifting gear constantly between the farthest reach of his lights and the nearest, and gave himself over entirely to the pleasures of the journey, and to its still undetermined but essentially grave significance.†
Chpt 3
- Her thoughts for him were grave and sad, but only as they would be for any old, tired, suffering human being who had lived long and whose end, it appeared, had come.†
Chpt 4
- After no more than a few minutes, his wife had realized its terrible gravity, and had woken Thomas Oaks.†
Chpt 6
- No, I'm sure he would have called if his father had — even if there was any grave danger, Mary said.†
Chpt 7
- She could hear that he had left the engine running, and now she realized all the more clearly how grave matters were.†
Chpt 8
- There was the cap in its tissue paper, beside him on the floor; he slept less deeply than his sister, with his chin lifted, and his forehead flung back; he looked grave, serene and expectant.†
Chpt 12
- The word was a reproach upon them all, much more grave, they were sure, than Mary had intended, so that to spare her regret they all hastened to say, kindly and as if somewhat callously, "No, let's not.†
Chpt 12
- She drew him closer and looked at him almost glaring, she was so filled with grave intensity.†
Chpt 13
- Yet the mouth carried no suggestion either of smiling or of gravity; only strength, silence, manhood, and indifferent contentment.†
Chpt 18
- Right when they began to lower your father into the ground, into his grave, a cloud came over and there was a shadow just like iron, and a perfectly magnificent butterfly settled on the — coffin, just rested there, right over the breast, and stayed there, just barely making his wings breathe, like a heart.†
Chpt 20
Definitions:
-
(1)
(grave as in: Her manner was grave.) serious and/or solemnThe exact meaning of this sense of grave can depend upon its context. For example:
- "This is a grave problem," or "a situation of the utmost gravity." -- important, dangerous, or causing worry
- "She was in a grave mood upon returning from the funeral." -- sad or solemn
- "She looked me in the eye and gravely promised." -- in a sincere and serious manner
-
(2)
(meaning too common or rare to warrant focus) Better known meanings of grave and gravity:
- grave -- a place where a dead body is buried
- gravity -- in the sense of physics to refer to the force of attraction between all masses in the universe--especially the force that causes things to fall toward the earth
- death -- as in "A message from beyond the grave."
- describing a color as dark
- to sculpt with a chisel
- to clean and coat the bottom of a wooden ship with pitch
- grave accent -- a punctuation mark (`) that is used in some non-English languages, and that is placed over some letters of the alphabet to tell how they are pronounced.
- grave musical direction -- in a slow and solemn manner