grille

C2+ Topic:General Vocabulary

US /ˈɡrɪl/ UK /ˈɡrɪl/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
a grating of bars protecting an opening or window

An iron grille covered the basement window.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a grating of bars... grating grid lattice screen mesh

Word family

Related forms grill grid gridiron grillwork

Simplified etymology

Grille entered English in the mid-17th century and belongs to a group of words in which Latin cratis, “hurdle,” is also found.

Etymology

From French grille ('grating'), from Old French grille, greille, from Latin craticula ('small gridiron'), diminutive of cratis ('wickerwork, hurdle').

craticula Latin cratis Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# grille

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈɡrɪl/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈɡrɪl/

## Meanings
1. a grating of bars protecting an opening or window

## Examples
- An iron grille covered the basement window.

## Synonyms
- grating
- grid
- lattice
- screen
- mesh

## Related Forms
- grill
- grid
- gridiron
- grillwork

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: craticula
- Root: cratis

## Etymology
From French grille ('grating'), from Old French grille, greille, from Latin craticula ('small gridiron'), diminutive of cratis ('wickerwork, hurdle').

## AI Etymology
Grille comes from French grille ('grating'), from Old French grille, greille, from Latin craticula ('small gridiron'), diminutive of cratis ('wickerwork, hurdle'). The development is chiefly a borrowing or learned continuation, carrying an older form and meaning into English rather than building the word from a purely native base. In present use, it is used as a noun meaning "a grating of bars protecting an opening or window", so the historical material remains connected with the current sense rather than standing as bare ancestry. The wider English family includes related forms such as grill, grid, gridiron, and grillwork, showing how the same historical material continues to organize neighboring vocabulary. The named historical forms include Latin craticula and Latin cratis, keeping the history tied to concrete forms rather than a loose resemblance. Its semantic neighborhood includes grating, grid, lattice, and screen, locating the modern specialization without adding a new origin story.

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

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