'Groan' is a deep sound of pain or annoyance; 'grown' is the past participle of 'to grow'.
Verb/noun. To make a deep sound expressing pain, displeasure, or effort. Also the sound itself.
The audience groaned when the presenter announced another delay.
He let out a groan when he saw the size of the report.
The old floorboards groaned under the weight of the furniture.
Verb (past participle)/adjective. Past participle of 'to grow'. Also adjective: adult ('grown-up'), fully developed.
The company has grown from five employees to over two hundred.
The children have grown so much since I last saw them.
By the time she was twenty-five, she was a fully grown professional.
Common mistake
"The market has groan significantly" when meaning expanded (correct: grown). Or mixing the vowel patterns: 'groan' has OA, 'grown' has OW.
Trick to remember it
'Groan' rhymes with 'moan' — both are sounds of discomfort with OA. 'Grown' rhymes with 'known', 'blown', 'thrown' — all past participles with OW.
Quick rule
Is it the sound of pain or annoyance? 'Groan'. Is it the past participle of to grow? 'Grown'.
Did you know?
A 'groan-worthy' joke is deliberately bad enough to make you groan — often called a 'dad joke' or 'pun'. Research suggests the groan response to a bad pun is genuine: the brain recognises the joke structure, anticipates the punchline, feels mild disappointment when it's obvious, and the groan is an authentic reaction. 'Grown' follows the irregular pattern of strong verbs: grow, grew, grown — like know/knew/known and blow/blew/blown.
Exercise 1 · Pick the right one
The startup has _____ into a fully established company with offices in three countries.
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
Everyone in the room _____ when they saw the project had been pushed back another month.
Exercise 3 · Form the word
Is it the sound of pain or annoyance? 'Groan'. Is it the past participle of to grow? 'Grown'.
"The market has groan significantly" when meaning expanded (correct: grown). Or mixing the vowel patterns: 'groan' has OA, 'grown' has OW.
'Groan' rhymes with 'moan' — both are sounds of discomfort with OA. 'Grown' rhymes with 'known', 'blown', 'thrown' — all past participles with OW.
Bryan López
Founder of SpeakUP Academy