English Reference

Word

gran

US/ˈɡɹæn/

UK/ɡɹˈæn/

Definition

n. a friendly and informal name for your grandmother.

n. an informal, affectionate term for a grandmother; common in British, Australian, and New Zealand English.

Examples

“I am visiting my gran this weekend.”

“My gran always keeps a tin of biscuits on the top shelf for when the children visit.”

“While the formal register requires 'grandmother' in legal documents, most families in the region default to 'gran' or 'nana' in daily conversation to signal affection.”

Examples

simple

“I am visiting my gran this weekend.”

contextual

“My gran always keeps a tin of biscuits on the top shelf for when the children visit.”

complex

“While the formal register requires 'grandmother' in legal documents, most families in the region default to 'gran' or 'nana' in daily conversation to signal affection.”

Usage

Often used as a proper noun without an article when addressing or referring to one's own grandmother.

Etymology

Borrowed from Norwegian and Swedish Gran. Also borrowed from Tagalog Gran.

Borrowed from German Gran.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Synonyms

This entry

Level
A2 · Elementary
Frequency
Frequent
Updated
Register
Informal, British English

Scan code

englishreference.com/q/gran

English Reference