grievance

[ gree-vuhns ]

noun

1. a wrong considered as grounds for complaint, or something believed to cause distress:

   Inequitable taxation is the chief grievance.

   Synonyms: distress, injury, hurt, injustice, affront

2. a complaint, as against an unjust or unfair act:

   to have a grievance against someone.

3. a feeling or belief that one has been wronged, oppressed, or is the victim of an injustice; resentment:

   The conflict on campus was described as the result of racial grievance or victim culture, depending on who reported it.

grievance

/ ˈɡriːvəns /

noun

1. a real or imaginary wrong causing resentment and regarded as grounds for complaint
2. a feeling of resentment or injustice at having been unfairly treated
3. obsolete.
   affliction or hardship

Other Words From

• pre·griev·ance noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of grievance¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English greva(u)nce, greva(u)ns “injury, offense, annoyance,” from Old French grevance “harm, injury, trouble, misfortune”; grieve, -ance

Word History and Origins

Origin of grievance¹

C15 grevance, from Old French, from grever to grieve ¹

Idioms and Phrases

see air one's grievances .

Example Sentences

"The biggest thing mainstream analysis refuses to comprehend is the continued power of a politics of racial grievance and religious nostalgia among white Christian Americans."

From Salon

What I found suggested that Crusius’ grievances were neither isolated nor unique.

From Salon

McMillion allegedly said the unit’s members had turned their Internal Affairs interviews into a “couch session” to air out their grievances.

From Los Angeles Times

What Trump is offering to his supporters is pretty close to pure poison — lies, grievance and division.

From Salon

Ultimately, Donald Trump was able to channel the public’s grievances into his own personal grievances and ride a wave of populist rage into the White House for a second time.

From Salon

Related Words

• grief
• hardship
• injustice
• objection
• outrage
• resentment
• sorrow
• unhappiness