Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A vine on which grapes grow.
- noun The informal transmission of information, gossip, or rumor from person to person.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Bot.) A vine or climbing shrub, of the genus Vitis, having small green flowers and lobed leaves, and bearing the fruit called grapes.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun The
plant , avine of genusVitis , on whichgrapes grow - noun A
rumor - noun An informal person-to-person means of
circulating information orgossip . - noun skating A move in which the feet are alternately placed in front of each other, while both remaining on the ice or ground, incorporating half-turns.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun any of numerous woody vines of genus Vitis bearing clusters of edible berries
- noun gossip spread by spoken communication
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Rachel, most of these peer workshops are by invitation, so the grapevine is the way to learn about them.
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"Watch me!" cried Ted, as he began doing what he called a grapevine twist.
The Curlytops and Their Playmates or Jolly Times Through the Holidays Howard Roger Garis 1917
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Word on the grapevine is that the Canadian media is getting ready for the massive feeding frenzy that will be the 100th Canadian soldier death in Afghanistan, a galvanizing moment for the anti-war leftist propagandists who will use the triple digit statistic to fast track our abandonment of Afghanistan.
The Afghan War Will Be Won And Lost On Media Propaganda « Unambiguously Ambidextrous 2008
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I hear via the grapevine from the hurricane experts at RSMS that the envelope of possibilities stretches up to a category three hurricane, which would be a pretty nasty one.
Discourse.net: Fay 2008
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Word on the grapevine is that the Canadian media is getting ready for the massive feeding frenzy that will be the 100th Canadian soldier death in Afghanistan, a galvanizing moment for the anti-war leftist propagandists who will use the triple digit statistic to fast track our abandonment of Afghanistan.
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PS – Word on the Hip-O grapevine is that a long-awaited (I knew of it being in the planning stages a year ago!) “Supremes Lost & Found” is coming later this month or at the beginning of February.
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However, the prison grapevine is remarkably effective and Langham's presence will be known from day one.
Langham In Danger Newmania 2007
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However, the prison grapevine is remarkably effective and Langham's presence will be known from day one.
Archive 2007-09-09 Newmania 2007
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Word on the grapevine is that Podshow's contract locks its participants into Podshow for all podcasting activity two or three years (reports on the duration vary).
Adam Curry Correction + Podcast Ownership Ben Barren 2006
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Through the grapevine is pretty much how the club has been picking up members as it rolled along after it got started by Caris Lim, a Swiss woman married to a Malaysian.
Fiction and Friends Sharon Bakar 2004
mollusque commented on the word grapevine
Grapevines think alike.
June 15, 2008
skipvia commented on the word grapevine
"People say believe half of what you see
Son, and none of what you hear..."
-Marvin Gaye
Good advice.
June 15, 2008
ruzuzu commented on the word grapevine
Oh funny--I always heard that as "some or none of what you hear."
January 19, 2011
reesetee commented on the word grapevine
There's a list for that, I'm pretty certain.
January 19, 2011