The 17th-Century Verb “Grob” for Feeling Around in the Dark

Susie Dent’s murder mystery Guilty by Definition (Bookshop|Amazon) uses the obsolete verb grob. It’s a 17th-century word meaning to search by touch, especially with the hand in a dark place, as when feeling around in a purse or pocket for keys or change. The sound may bring to mind grab, grip, or grub about, but no firm etymology is known. This is part of a complete episode.

One of the odd words that I picked up from Susie Dent’s murder mystery,

Guilty by Definition, is the word grob, G-R-O-B.

Any idea what grob means? It’s a verb.

Grob. I don’t know. I’m thinking about the dirty piles of snow in the winter.

I kicked the grob out of my path as I walked to the station.

That’s good.

I like that.

I don’t know.

What is it?

What is a grob?

Well, grob is a 17th century word that’s now obsolete, but originally it meant to search by a sense of feeling as with the hand in a dark place, you know?

So you might grob.

Oh, grobbing about.

Yes.

So notions of grabbing or gripping in there, maybe.

Yeah, yeah.

And you might grob about in your purse for your car keys or your pockets.

Oh, yeah.

Grobbing about.

Grub about, you know, you grub about looking for food in the forest floor.

Interesting.

Yeah, that’s true too.

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