grazed; grazing
1
: to feed on growing herbage, attached algae, or phytoplankton
cattle grazing on the slopes
2
: to eat small portions of food throughout the day
She was grazing on snacks all afternoon.
1
a
: to crop and eat in the field
b
: to feed on the herbage of
2
a
: to put to graze
grazed his livestock in pastures
b
: to put cattle to graze on
grazed the upper field
3
: to supply herbage for the grazing of
That pasture will graze 30 head of cattle.
grazer
noun
grazed; grazing
1
: to touch lightly in passing
The car's wheel grazed the curb.
: to touch or rub against something in passing
Our fenders just grazed.
: a scraping along a surface or an abrasion made by it
especially
: a superficial abrasion of the skin
had a slight graze on her knee from falling
Synonyms
Examples of graze in a Sentence
Verb (1)
cows grazing in the meadow
Verb (2)
I grazed my elbow diving for the ball
the volleyball just grazed my face, so I'm okay
Noun (2)
a stumble that resulted in nothing more serious than a graze on the knee
Recent Examples on the Web
Amy Maxmen | Kff Health News, ABC News, 24 May 2024
The 14-year-old was struck in the ankle, the girl was wounded in the buttocks and the oldest teen was grazed in the back, police said.
—William Lee, Chicago Tribune, 18 May 2024
Ramos will have plenty of opportunities to graze that patch of outfield grass himself.
—Justice Delos Santos, The Mercury News, 17 May 2024
Average temperatures in Mongolia are already 2°C warmer than at the start of the 20th century—more severe than the global average—meaning drier weather, more frequent dust storms, and sparser grasslands for grazing animals to acquire the fat necessary to survive longer winters.
—TIME, 14 May 2024
Animals graze as the indigenous families discuss what to make for food; meanwhile, the white farmers drive their trucks and use their iPads to call others about their anxiety about the climate and their neighbors.
—Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 2 May 2024
The bullet grazed three fingers on his right hand, then smashed his phone into his leg, leaving an imprint from its camera lenses.
—Darcy Costello, Baltimore Sun, 1 Mar. 2024
One officer was shot in the shoulder, another was shot in the leg and the other was grazed, Schierbaum said.
—Victoria Arancio, ABC News, 11 May 2024
The tip of her weapon grazes the other fighter just below her chest.
—Lenny Rashid Ruvaga, The Christian Science Monitor, 8 May 2024
Dillon Mullan, Baltimore Sun, 19 Feb. 2024
He was released after treatment at a hospital for an apparent graze wound.
—Kate Talerico, The Mercury News, 4 May 2024
Watch:Zebras, camels, pony graze Indiana highway after being rescued from semi-truck fire
Viola the elephant was recaptured unharmed, reports say
Butte is a town in southwestern Montana about 85 miles from Bozeman and 170 miles north of Yellowstone National Park.
—Emily Deletter, USA TODAY, 17 Apr. 2024
The Barbie pig grazes upon the small amounts of detritus that descend from surface waters to the seabed and are important in terms of cycling organic matter, explained Drennan, who wasn’t directly involved in the expedition.
—Katie Hunt, CNN, 3 Apr. 2024
According to an autopsy by a Summit County medical examiner Dr. Lisa Kohler, Walker suffered 46 gunshot entrance wounds or graze injuries.
—Sarah Dewberry, CNN, 24 Oct. 2023
The Resolution had anchored off Moorea, one of the Society Islands, and animals from the ship’s travelling menagerie had been left to graze onshore.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
The other victims include a 15-year-old boy who sustained a graze wound to his right shoulder while attempting to flee the chaotic scene.
—Louis Casiano, Fox News, 5 Mar. 2024
This type of innovation might benefit farmers who let their livestock graze in fields rather than provide them with feed.
—Paul Winters, Discover Magazine, 16 Mar. 2024
Verb
The rules, such as prohibiting infected cattle from interstate travel for 30 days, pose a problem for farmers who move pregnant cattle to farms that specialize in calving, to graze in states with gentler winters, and to return home for milking.
—Amy Maxmen | Kff Health News, ABC News, 24 May 2024
The 14-year-old was struck in the ankle, the girl was wounded in the buttocks and the oldest teen was grazed in the back, police said.
—William Lee, Chicago Tribune, 18 May 2024
Ramos will have plenty of opportunities to graze that patch of outfield grass himself.
—Justice Delos Santos, The Mercury News, 17 May 2024
Average temperatures in Mongolia are already 2°C warmer than at the start of the 20th century—more severe than the global average—meaning drier weather, more frequent dust storms, and sparser grasslands for grazing animals to acquire the fat necessary to survive longer winters.
—TIME, 14 May 2024
Animals graze as the indigenous families discuss what to make for food; meanwhile, the white farmers drive their trucks and use their iPads to call others about their anxiety about the climate and their neighbors.
—Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 2 May 2024
The bullet grazed three fingers on his right hand, then smashed his phone into his leg, leaving an imprint from its camera lenses.
—Darcy Costello, Baltimore Sun, 1 Mar. 2024
One officer was shot in the shoulder, another was shot in the leg and the other was grazed, Schierbaum said.
—Victoria Arancio, ABC News, 11 May 2024
The tip of her weapon grazes the other fighter just below her chest.
—Lenny Rashid Ruvaga, The Christian Science Monitor, 8 May 2024
Noun
Officers responded to the 400 block of South Broadway Street and found one victim with graze wounds to the body and the other victim with gunshot wounds to the body, police said.
—Dillon Mullan, Baltimore Sun, 19 Feb. 2024
He was released after treatment at a hospital for an apparent graze wound.
—Kate Talerico, The Mercury News, 4 May 2024
Watch:Zebras, camels, pony graze Indiana highway after being rescued from semi-truck fire
Viola the elephant was recaptured unharmed, reports say
Butte is a town in southwestern Montana about 85 miles from Bozeman and 170 miles north of Yellowstone National Park.
—Emily Deletter, USA TODAY, 17 Apr. 2024
The Barbie pig grazes upon the small amounts of detritus that descend from surface waters to the seabed and are important in terms of cycling organic matter, explained Drennan, who wasn’t directly involved in the expedition.
—Katie Hunt, CNN, 3 Apr. 2024
According to an autopsy by a Summit County medical examiner Dr. Lisa Kohler, Walker suffered 46 gunshot entrance wounds or graze injuries.
—Sarah Dewberry, CNN, 24 Oct. 2023
The Resolution had anchored off Moorea, one of the Society Islands, and animals from the ship’s travelling menagerie had been left to graze onshore.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
The other victims include a 15-year-old boy who sustained a graze wound to his right shoulder while attempting to flee the chaotic scene.
—Louis Casiano, Fox News, 5 Mar. 2024
This type of innovation might benefit farmers who let their livestock graze in fields rather than provide them with feed.
—Paul Winters, Discover Magazine, 16 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'graze.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near graze
Cite this Entry
“Graze.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/graze. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
graze
1 of 3 verb
grazed; grazing
1
: to feed on growing grass or herbs
cattle grazing on the hill
2
: to put to feed on grass or herbs
the farmer grazed the cattle
graze
2 of 3 verb
grazed; grazing
1
: to rub or touch lightly in passing : touch against and quickly move away from
the car's wheel grazed the curb
2
: to scratch or scrape by rubbing against something
fell and grazed her knee
graze
3 of 3 noun
: an act or result of grazing
especially
: a skin injury caused by grazing : scrape
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