Grate vs. Great — What's the Difference?
By Urooj Arif & Fiza Rafique — Updated on April 22, 2024
"Grate" refers to a metal frame with bars, used for cooking or as part of a fireplace, while "great" is an adjective describing something of large size or exceptional quality.
Difference Between Grate and Great
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
"Grate" is a noun that describes a framework of metal bars used to hold fuel or food over a fire, common in cooking and heating applications. On the other hand, "great" is an adjective used to express large scale, high quality, or significant degree of excellence or importance in various contexts, from personal achievements to historical events.
Grates are essential in various domestic and industrial settings, providing a surface that allows for air and flame to circulate efficiently during burning or cooking. Whereas, the term "great" can apply to abstract qualities like greatness in character, tangible sizes like a great distance, or in expressions of satisfaction such as "that’s great!"
The construction of grates involves materials that can withstand high temperatures, such as cast iron or steel, making them durable and suitable for repeated use. Conversely, the use of "great" in language varies widely, adapting to describe anything that exceeds ordinary standards in size, amount, quality, or degree.
In literature and speech, "grate" might appear in descriptions of domestic scenes or historical settings, emphasizing functionality and practical design. On the other hand, "great" is used to enhance narratives, provide emphasis, or convey the significance of events, characters, or achievements.
Choosing between "grate" and "great" depends entirely on context, as they belong to completely different categories of language; one is a concrete noun with a specific physical application, and the other is an adjective with broad, versatile usage across many facets of communication.
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Comparison Chart
Part of Speech
Noun
Adjective
Definition
Metal framework for holding items over fire
Adjective indicating large size or high quality
Usage Context
Fireplaces, grills
Descriptive language, accolades
Material/Construction
Made of heat-resistant materials like iron
Used to describe intangible qualities or tangible sizes
Example Usage
Used in cooking and heating appliances
Used to describe something impressive or of high quality
Compare with Definitions
Grate
Made from durable materials.
The cast iron grate can withstand very high temperatures.
Great
Significant or considerable.
He played a great role in the project’s success.
Grate
Found in domestic and industrial settings.
Industrial furnaces use large grates for burning coal.
Great
Expressing satisfaction or approval.
That’s great news about your new job!
Grate
Metal frame with bars.
The wood was stacked on the grate for the fire.
Great
Of large size or extent.
They walked a great distance before finding the cabin.
Grate
Part of a fireplace or grill.
He cleaned the grate before starting the barbecue.
Great
Of high quality or degree.
She had great fun at the party last night.
Grate
Used to hold items over fire.
We grilled the fish on a grate to give it a smoky flavor.
Great
Used in exclamations.
Great! We’re finally ready to start.
Grate
To reduce to fragments, shreds, or powder by rubbing against an abrasive surface.
Great
Very large in size, extent, or intensity
A great pile of rubble.
A great storm.
Grate
To cause to make a harsh grinding or rasping sound through friction
Grated her teeth in anger.
Great
Of a larger size than other, similar forms
The great anteater.
Grate
To irritate or annoy persistently
It always grates me to get put on hold.
Great
Large in quantity or number
A great throng awaited us.
Grate
(Archaic) To rub or wear away.
Great
Extensive in time or distance
A great delay.
A great way off.
Grate
To make a harsh rasping sound
An old gate grating in the wind.
Great
Remarkable or outstanding in magnitude, degree, or extent
A great crisis.
Great anticipation.
Grate
To cause irritation or annoyance
A noise that grates on one's nerves.
Great
Of outstanding significance or importance
A great work of art.
Grate
To equip with a grate.
Great
Chief or principal
The great house on the estate.
Grate
A harsh rasping sound made by scraping or rubbing
The grate of a key in a lock.
Great
Superior in quality or character; noble
A great man who dedicated himself to helping others.
Grate
A framework of parallel or latticed bars for blocking an opening.
Great
Powerful; influential
One of the great nations of the West.
Grate
A framework of metal bars used to hold fuel or food in a stove, furnace, or fireplace.
Great
Eminent; distinguished
A great leader.
Grate
A fireplace.
Great
Very good; first-rate
We had a great time at the dance.
Grate
A perforated iron plate or screen for sieving and grading crushed ore.
Great
Very skillful
She is great at algebra.
Grate
A horizontal metal grill through which water, ash, or small objects can fall, while larger objects cannot.
The grate stopped the sheep from escaping from their field.
Great
Enthusiastic
A great lover of music.
Grate
A frame or bed, or kind of basket, of iron bars, for holding fuel while burning.
Great
Being one generation removed from the relative specified. Often used in combination
A great-granddaughter.
Grate
(historical) A grapper, a metal ring on a lance behind the grip.
Great
(Archaic) Pregnant.
Grate
(transitive) To furnish with grates; to protect with a grating or crossbars.
To grate a window
Great
Pl. greats or great One that is great
A composer considered among the greats.
Grate
To shred (things, usually foodstuffs), by rubbing across a grater.
I need to grate the cheese before the potato is cooked.
Great
A division of most pipe organs, usually containing the most powerful ranks of pipes.
Grate
(intransitive) To make an unpleasant rasping sound, often as the result of rubbing against something.
Listening to his teeth grate all day long drives me mad.
The chalk grated against the board.
Great
A similar division of other organs.
Grate
To get on one's nerves; to irritate, annoy.
She’s nice enough, but she can begin to grate if there is no-one else to talk to.
Great
Very well
Got along great with the teacher.
Grate
To annoy.
Great
Used as an intensive with certain adjectives
A great big kiss.
Grate
(obsolete) Serving to gratify; agreeable.
Great
(augmentative) Large, senior high-ranking, intense, extreme, or exceptional
Grate
Serving to gratify; agreeable.
Great
Relatively large in scale, size, extent, number (i.e. having many parts or members) or duration (i.e. relatively long); very big.
A great storm is approaching our shores.
A great assembly
A great wait
Grate
A structure or frame containing parallel or crosed bars, with interstices; a kind of latticework, such as is used ia the windows of prisons and cloisters.
Great
Title referring to an important leader.
Alexander the Great
Grate
A frame or bed, or kind of basket, of iron bars, for holding fuel while burning.
Great
Of larger size or more importance than others of its kind.
The great auk
Grate
To furnish with grates; to protect with a grating or crossbars; as, to grate a window.
Great
(informal) Very good; excellent; wonderful; fantastic.
Dinner was great.
Grate
To rub roughly or harshly, as one body against another, causing a harsh sound; as, to grate the teeth; to produce (a harsh sound) by rubbing.
On their hinges grateHarsh thunder.
Great
Intensifying a word or expression, used in mild oaths.
A dirty great smack in the face
Great Scott!
Grate
To reduce to small particles by rubbing with anything rough or indented; as, to grate a nutmeg.
Great
(qualifying nouns of family relationship) Involving more generations than the qualified word implies — as many extra generations as repetitions of the word great (from 1510s). [see Derived terms]
Great-grandfather, great-great-grandfather, great-great-great-grandfather
Grate
To fret; to irritate; to offend.
News, my good lord Rome . . . grates me.
Great
Pregnant; large with young; full of.
Great with child
Great with hope
Grate
To make a harsh sound by friction.
I had rather hear a brazen canstick turned,Or a dry wheel grate on the exletree.
Great
Intimate; familiar.
Grate
To produce the effect of rubbing with a hard rough material; to cause wearing, tearing, or bruising. Hence; To produce exasperation, soreness, or grief; to offend by oppression or importunity.
This grated harder upon the hearts of men.
Great
Extreme or more than usual.
Great worry
Grate
A frame of iron bars to hold a fire
Great
Of significant importance or consequence; important.
A great decision
Grate
A harsh rasping sound made by scraping something
Great
(applied to actions, thoughts and feelings) Arising from or possessing idealism; admirable; superior; commanding; heroic; illustrious; eminent.
A great deed
A great nature
A great history
Grate
A barrier that has parallel or crossed bars blocking a passage but admitting air
Great
Impressive or striking.
A great show of wealth
Grate
Furnish with a grate;
A grated fireplace
Great
Much in use; favoured.
Poetry was a great convention of the Romantic era.
Grate
Gnaw into; make resentful or angry;
The unjustice rankled her
His resentment festered
Great
(applied to persons) Endowed with extraordinary powers; of exceptional talents or achievements; uncommonly gifted; able to accomplish vast results; remarkable; strong; powerful; mighty; noble.
A great hero, scholar, genius, philosopher, writer etc.
Grate
Reduce to small shreds or pulverize by rubbing against a rough or sharp perforated surface;
Grate carrots and onions
Grate nutmeg
Great
Doing or exemplifying (a characteristic or pursuit) on a large scale; active or enthusiastic.
What a great buffoon!
He's not a great one for reading.
A great walker
Grate
Make a grating or grinding sound by rubbing together;
Grate one's teeth in anger
Great
(often followed by 'at') Skilful or adroit.
A great carpenter
You are great at singing.
Grate
Scratch repeatedly;
The cat scraped at the armchair
Great
Expression of gladness and content about something.
Great! Thanks for the wonderful work.
Great
Sarcastic inversion thereof.
Oh, great! I just dumped all 500 sheets of the manuscript all over and now I have to put them back in order.
Great
A person of major significance, accomplishment or acclaim.
Newton and Einstein are two of the greats of the history of science.
Great
(music) The main division in a pipe organ, usually the loudest division.
Great
(in combinations such as "two-greats", "three-greats" etc.) An instance of the word "great" signifying an additional generation in phrases expressing family relationships.
My three-greats grandmother.
Great
(informal) Very well in a very satisfactory manner.
Those mechanical colored pencils work great because they don't have to be sharpened.
Great
Large in space; of much size; big; immense; enormous; expanded; - opposed to small and little; as, a great house, ship, farm, plain, distance, length.
Great
Large in number; numerous; as, a great company, multitude, series, etc.
Great
Long continued; lengthened in duration; prolonged in time; as, a great while; a great interval.
Great
Superior; admirable; commanding; - applied to thoughts, actions, and feelings.
Great
Endowed with extraordinary powers; uncommonly gifted; able to accomplish vast results; strong; powerful; mighty; noble; as, a great hero, scholar, genius, philosopher, etc.
Great
Holding a chief position; elevated: lofty: eminent; distinguished; foremost; principal; as, great men; the great seal; the great marshal, etc.
He doth object I am too great of birth.
Great
Entitled to earnest consideration; weighty; important; as, a great argument, truth, or principle.
Great
Pregnant; big (with young).
The ewes great with young.
Great
More than ordinary in degree; very considerable in degree; as, to use great caution; to be in great pain.
We have allGreat cause to give great thanks.
Great
Older, younger, or more remote, by single generation; - often used before grand to indicate one degree more remote in the direct line of descent; as, great-grandfather (a grandfather's or a grandmother's father), great-grandson, etc.
Great
The whole; the gross; as, a contract to build a ship by the great.
Great
Relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind;
A great juicy steak
A great multitude
The great auk
A great old oak
A great ocean liner
A great delay
Great
More than usual;
Great expectations
Great worry
Great
(used of persons) standing above others in character or attainment or reputation;
Our distinguished professor
An eminent scholar
A great statesman
Great
Of major significance or importance;
A great work of art
Einstein was one of the outstanding figures of the 20th century
Great
Remarkable or out of the ordinary in degree or magnitude or effect;
A great crisis
Had a great stake in the outcome
Great
Very good;
He did a bully job
A neat sports car
Had a great time at the party
You look simply smashing
Great
Uppercase;
Capital A
Great A
Many medieval manuscripts are in majuscule script
Great
Marked by active interest and enthusiasm;
An avid sports fan
A great walker
An eager beaver
Great
In an advanced stage of pregnancy;
Was big with child
Was great with child
Common Curiosities
Can 'grate' be used as a verb?
Yes, "grate" can also be a verb meaning to shred something into small pieces, like cheese.
How do you define 'great'?
"Great" is an adjective describing something of large size, exceptional quality, or significant degree.
Is 'great' always a positive term?
Typically, "great" is used positively, but it can also be neutral, depending on context, such as in "a great amount of damage."
What makes something 'great'?
Something is considered "great" if it stands out significantly in quality, size, or importance compared to normal standards.
What are some synonyms for 'great'?
Excellent, fantastic, tremendous, and significant are all synonyms for "great."
Can 'great' refer to something negative?
Yes, when used in contexts like "a great problem," it indicates something large or significant but negative.
How does the material of a grate affect its use?
The durability and heat resistance of the grate’s material determine its suitability for either high-temperature cooking or burning.
How does one maintain a grate?
Maintaining a grate involves regular cleaning to remove ash and debris and checking for signs of wear or damage.
What is a grate used for?
A grate is used to hold fuel or food over a fire, allowing air to circulate and facilitate burning or cooking.
Where might one typically find a grate?
Grates are commonly found in fireplaces, barbecues, and as cooking surfaces in various heating appliances.
Are there sustainable alternatives to traditional metal grates?
Yes, some modern grates are made from recycled metals or more sustainable materials, reducing environmental impact.
How is a grate constructed?
A grate is typically constructed from bars of heat-resistant metals such as iron or steel, arranged in a frame.
What is the importance of a grate in a fireplace?
In a fireplace, a grate lifts the wood off the ground, enhancing air circulation and leading to a more efficient burn.
What are common uses of 'great' in everyday language?
It's commonly used to express satisfaction, as in "That's great!" or to describe something impressive or extensive.
What historical figures are often described as 'great'?
Figures like Alexander the Great or Catherine the Great are described as "great" due to their significant impacts on history.
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Written by
Urooj ArifUrooj is a skilled content writer at Ask Difference, known for her exceptional ability to simplify complex topics into engaging and informative content. With a passion for research and a flair for clear, concise writing, she consistently delivers articles that resonate with our diverse audience.
Co-written by
Fiza RafiqueFiza Rafique is a skilled content writer at AskDifference.com, where she meticulously refines and enhances written pieces. Drawing from her vast editorial expertise, Fiza ensures clarity, accuracy, and precision in every article. Passionate about language, she continually seeks to elevate the quality of content for readers worldwide.
