Meaning & use
grace
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Meanings
noununcountable
Smooth, elegant movement, shape, or manner, often seeming effortless.
Grammar: Usually uncountable: move with grace, not a grace.
Patterns
- with grace
- the grace of something
- fall with grace
The skater turned with surprising grace after the stumble.
We admired the grace of the bridge’s curved lines.
She accepted defeat with grace and thanked the judges.
noununcountableformal
Polite kindness or goodwill shown to others, especially when they do not deserve it.
Grammar: Uncountable; common in social grace and show grace toward someone.
Patterns
- show grace to someone
- social grace
- have the grace to do something
He had the grace to admit he had been wrong.
Good hosts show grace even when guests arrive late.
Her apology was accepted with grace.
noununcountablereligion
In Christian belief, God’s free love and favor given to people, not earned by their own goodness.
Grammar: Uncountable; a technical religious use, often capitalized by some writers.
Patterns
- the grace of God
- receive grace
- a state of grace
The sermon described grace as a gift rather than a reward.
They prayed for grace during a difficult illness.
nounsingularbusinessfinance
Extra time allowed before payment, punishment, or a rule begins to apply.
Grammar: Usually singular with a: a grace period; fixed in set phrases.
Patterns
- a grace period
- two weeks' grace
- give someone grace
The bank offers a five-day grace period before charging a late fee.
Students were given a week’s grace to finish the project.
nouncountable or uncountablereligion
A short prayer of thanks said before or after a meal.
Grammar: Often uncountable in say grace; countable when naming a particular prayer.
Patterns
- say grace
- give grace
- before grace
Our family says grace before dinner on holidays.
The child whispered grace too quickly and made everyone laugh.
Word forms
| plural | graces |
|---|
Common combinations
- with grace
- She handled the rude question with grace.
- fall from grace
- The champion fell from grace after the doping scandal.
- grace period
- Check whether your card has a grace period for interest.
- say grace
- Grandpa still says grace before every meal.
Synonyms and how they differ
- elegance
- Elegance fits beauty of movement or design; grace can also include moral kindness.
- charm
- Charm is pleasing social appeal, while grace suggests smooth control and dignity.
- dignity
- Dignity is calm self-respect under pressure; grace is smoother and more beautiful.
- mercy
- Mercy fits leniency toward wrongdoing, not the elegance sense of grace.
Opposites
Word family
- graceful adjective
- Moving or behaving in a smooth, elegant way.
- gracefully adverb
- In a graceful manner; also without complaint.
- graceless adjective
- Lacking smooth movement or polite tact.
- gracious adjective
- Kind, polite, and pleasant, especially to guests or inferiors.
Commonly confused: grace or graceful? grace or gracious?
grace vs graceful
Grace is the noun for smooth elegance; graceful is the adjective describing movement.
grace vs gracious
Gracious describes kind, courteous behavior, while grace is the quality or religious gift.
Practice
Choose the sentence that uses “grace” in the religious sense.
Choose one answer.
Praying for God’s unearned favor is the religious sense. A grace period concerns time, dance concerns elegance, and saying grace is a meal prayer.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “grace”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.