Gripe \Gripe\, n.
   1. Grasp; seizure; fast hold; clutch.
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            A barren scepter in my gripe.         --Shak.
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   2. That on which the grasp is put; a handle; a grip; as, the
      gripe of a sword.
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   3. (Mech.) A device for grasping or holding anything; a brake
      to stop a wheel.
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   4. Oppression; cruel exaction; affiction; pinching distress;
      as, the gripe of poverty.
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   5. Pinching and spasmodic pain in the intestines; -- chiefly
      used in the plural.
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   6. (Naut.)
      (a) The piece of timber which terminates the keel at the
          fore end; the forefoot.
      (b) The compass or sharpness of a ship's stern under the
          water, having a tendency to make her keep a good wind.
      (c) pl. An assemblage of ropes, dead-eyes, and hocks,
          fastened to ringbolts in the deck, to secure the boats
          when hoisted; also, broad bands passed around a boat
          to secure it at the davits and prevent swinging.
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   Gripe penny, a miser; a niggard. --D. L. Mackenzie.
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