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Phrase(s): grind something away
to remove something by grinding. • Grind the bumps away and make the wall smooth. • Please grind away the bumps., Phrase(s): grind away (at someone)
Fig. to needle, criticize, and nag someone continually. • Why are you always grinding away at me? • Leave me alone. Stop grinding away!, Phrase(s): grind away (at something)
to crush something into particles continually. • The machine ground away at the rocks, making tons of gravel. • It ground away, making a terrible noise in the process.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs