grovel
To crawl or beg in an overly humble way to please someone.
grovel in a sentence
- 'You needn't grovel,' said the king. 'A simple apology will do.'
- The puppy seemed to grovel at Dad's feet, rolling over and begging to be forgiven for the chewed slipper.
Try an 11+ style question
Verbal reasoning papers often ask about a word like this.
Which word is closest in meaning to grovel?
- Astrut
- Bboast
- Ccommand
- Dcrawl
Show the answer
D: crawl. The other three mean the opposite of grovel.
Which word is most nearly opposite in meaning to grovel?
- Acreep
- Bstrut
- Ccrawl
- Dbeg
Show the answer
B: strut. The other three mean nearly the same as grovel.
Words that mean something similar
crawl, beg, creep
Words that mean the opposite
strut, boast, command
More words about behaviour & manners
- haphazard: Done in a messy way with no plan at all.
- hoard: To collect lots of things and hide them away.
- hoax: A trick that makes people believe something that is not true.
- hostile: Very unfriendly and ready to argue or fight.
- hygienic: Clean and free from germs that could spread illness.
- idle: Not busy or not in use, or not wanting to work.
- imitate: To copy the way someone speaks or acts.
- impertinent: Rude and not showing respect.
More words to explore
Sitting the 11+ in Kent, Medway or Buckinghamshire?
Plain-English guides to each test, from the councils’ own pages: Kent Test · Medway Test · Bucks Secondary Transfer Test