grovel

verb

Etymology: From Middle English *grovelen, from Old Norse grufla, grœfla (“to grovel”), from Proto-Germanic *grubilōną (“to dig, delve into”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrebʰ‑ (“to dig, scrape, scrabble, scratch”); akin to Old Norse á grufu (“on one's belly”) ( > Old Norse grúfa (“to lie face down, grovel”)). Cognate with Scots grovel, gruvil (“to grovel”), German grübeln (“to meditate, ponder”), Norwegian Nynorsk gruvla (“to grovel”). Compare also West Frisian groebeltsje (“to make a mess, skip school, skive”), Dutch grobbelen (“to grope, root, grub”).

1. To be prone on the ground.
2. To crawl.

   “In the tube station, the old ones who were on the way out / Would dribble and vomit and grovel and shout”

3. To abase oneself before another person.

   “She refused to grovel in front of the bully, standing her ground.”

4. To be slavishly nice to someone or apologize in the hope of securing something.

   “He had to grovel before his boss after missing the important meeting.”

   “He hated to grovel, but he knew it was the only way to save his job.”

5. To take pleasure in mundane activities.