# give someone grief

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/give-someone-grief
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To hassle or abuse someone.

## Examples

- My brother likes to give me grief about my messy room.
- The manager started to give the new employee grief for arriving five minutes late to the shift.
- Despite his best efforts to complete the project on time, his supervisor continued to give him grief regarding the minor errors in the final report.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.