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Nerve vs Grit - What's the difference?

nerve | grit | Related terms |

As nouns the difference between nerve and grit

is that nerve is a bundle of neurons with their connective tissue sheaths, blood vessels and lymphatics while grit is collection of hard small materials, such as dirt, ground stone, debris from sandblasting or other such grinding, swarf from metalworking.

As verbs the difference between nerve and grit

is that nerve is to give courage; sometimes with "up".grit is to clench, particularly in reaction to pain or anger; apparently only appears in gritting one's teeth.

As an adjective Grit is

of or belonging to the Liberal Party of Canada.

nerve

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • (zoology) A bundle of neurons with their connective tissue sheaths, blood vessels and lymphatics.
  • The nerves can be seen through the skin.''
  • (nonstandard, colloquial) A neuron.
  • (botany) A vein in a leaf; a grain in wood
  • ''Some plants have ornamental value because of their contrasting nerves
  • Courage, boldness.
  • He hasn't the nerve to tell her he likes her, what a wimp!
  • * 2013 , Daniel Taylor, Jack Wilshere scores twice to ease Arsenal to victory over Marseille'' (in ''The Guardian , 26 November 2013)[http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/nov/26/arsenal-marseille-match-report-champions-league]
  • A trip to the whistling, fire-cracking Stadio San Paolo is always a test of nerve but Wenger's men have already outplayed the Italians once.
  • Patience. (rfexample)
  • Stamina, endurance, fortitude.
  • * Milton
  • He led me on to mightiest deeds, / Above the nerve of mortal arm.
  • Audacity, gall.
  • He had the nerve to enter my house uninvited.
  • *
  • (in the plural) Agitation caused by fear, stress or other negative emotion.
  • Ellie had a bad case of nerves before the big test.
  • (obsolete) Sinew, tendon.
  • * 1610 , , act 1 scene 2
  • Come on; obey: / Thy nerves are in their infancy again, / And have no vigour in them.
    (Alexander Pope)

    Synonyms

    ; Audacity, gall : brashness, brazenness, big balls

    Hyponyms

    * See also

    Derived terms

    * bundle of nerves * get on somebody's nerves/get on one's nerves * nervation * nerveless * nervy * nerve cell * nerve center * nerve ending * nerve fiber * nerve gas * nerve impulse * nerve-racking * nerves of steel * nerve-wracking * nervi-, nervo- * touch a nerve * unnerved * war of nerves

    Verb

    (nerv)
  • To give courage; sometimes with "up".
  • ''May their example nerve us to face the enemy.
  • To give strength
  • ''The liquor nerved up several of the men after their icy march.

    Anagrams

    * ----

    grit

    English

    Etymology 1

    With early modern vowel shortening, from (etyl) grete, griet, from (etyl) ‘lump’).

    Noun

    (-)
  • Collection of hard small materials, such as dirt, ground stone, debris from sandblasting or other such grinding, swarf from metalworking.
  • The flower beds were white with grit from sand blasting the flagstone walkways.
  • Inedible particles in food.
  • It tastes like grit from nutshells in these cookies.
  • Firmness of mind; invincible spirit; unyielding courage or fearlessness; fortitude.
  • That kid with the cast on his arm has the grit to play dodgeball.
  • A measure of relative coarseness of an abrasive material such as sandpaper.
  • I need a sheet of 100 grit sandpaper.
  • (geology) A hard, coarse-grained siliceous sandstone; gritstone. Also, to a finer sharp-grained sandstone, e.g. grindstone grit .
  • Derived terms
    * *
    See also
    * debris * mortar and pestle * swarf

    Verb

  • To clench, particularly in reaction to pain or anger; apparently only appears in gritting one's teeth .
  • We had no choice but to grit our teeth and get on with it.
    He has a sleeping disorder and grits his teeth.
  • To cover with grit .
  • To give forth a grating sound, like sand under the feet; to grate; to grind.
  • * Goldsmith
  • The sanded floor that grits beneath the tread.
    Derived terms
    *

    Etymology 2

    (etyl) gryt ‘bran, chaff’, from (etyl) grytt, from (etyl) . See above.

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (usually in plural) husked]] but unground [[oat, oats
  • (usually in plural) coarsely ground corn or hominy used as porridge
  • Anagrams

    * girt * trig