Illustration of grunt
- grunt 2
grunted; grunting; grunts
: to utter a grunt
He didn't answer, only grunted.
: to utter with a grunt
"No," he grunted.
grunter
noun
plural grunts
1
a
: the deep short sound characteristic of a hog
b
: a similar sound
2
[from the noise it makes when taken from the water]
: any of a family (Haemulidae synonym Pomadasyidae) of chiefly tropical marine bony fishes
3
: a dessert made by dropping biscuit dough on top of boiling berries and steaming
blueberry grunt
4
a
: a U.S. army or marine foot soldier especially in the Vietnam War
b
: one who does routine unglamorous work
—often used attributively
grunt work
Examples of grunt in a Sentence
Verb
The workers were grunting with effort as they lifted the heavy furniture.
She grunted a few words in reply, then turned and walked away.
Noun
the grunt of a pig
I could hear the grunts of the movers as they lifted the heavy furniture.
He answered her with a grunt.
He was a grunt who worked his way up to become an officer.
He's just a grunt in the attorney's office.
Recent Examples on the Web
Nick Geisler, The Atlantic, 30 Dec. 2025
Larkin grunted and said nothing.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 10 Dec. 2025
Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 1 Jan. 2026
On the water, a 35-foot mahogany Van Dam runabout marries vintage wooden-boat craftsmanship with 1,100 hp of modern grunt.
—John Vorwald, Robb Report, 28 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for grunt
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Verb
The problem is that entry-level creative jobs are much more than grunt work.
—Nick Geisler, The Atlantic, 30 Dec. 2025
Larkin grunted and said nothing.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 10 Dec. 2025
Noun
Zach Edwards, senior threat researcher at Silent Push, said the structure is a classic one, in which young people do most of the dangerous grunt work in a criminal organization.
—Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 1 Jan. 2026
On the water, a 35-foot mahogany Van Dam runabout marries vintage wooden-boat craftsmanship with 1,100 hp of modern grunt.
—John Vorwald, Robb Report, 28 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for grunt
Cite this Entry
“Grunt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grunt. Accessed 3 Jan. 2026.
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