1
grovel before sb/sth
常表示在权势者面前极度顺从。
The servant grovelled before the king.
仆人在国王面前卑躬屈膝。
匍匐；卑躬屈膝
groveling — present participle of grovel
先理解核心含义，再看它在真实句子里的用法。
匍匐；卑躬屈膝
show submission or fear, especially by crawling or lying down
The servant grovelled before the king.
仆人在国王面前卑躬屈膝。
趴在地上
To be prone on the ground.
爬行
To crawl.
在他人面前卑躬屈膝
To abase oneself before another person.
卑躬屈膝地讨好或道歉以期获得某物
To be slavishly nice to someone or apologize in the hope of securing something.
grovel
Base
原形
grovels
3rd person
第三人称单数
grovelling
-ing
现在分词
grovelled
Past
过去式
grovelled
Past participle
过去分词
He grovels before the king.
他在国王面前卑躬屈膝。
She grovelled on the floor.
她趴在地板上。
They are grovelling for mercy.
他们正在乞求怜悯。
He has grovelled in apology.
他已经低声下气地道了歉。
英式拼写双写l，美式常作groveled
He grovelled before the boss to keep his job.
他为了保住工作而在老板面前卑躬屈膝。
She grovels and apologizes too much whenever she makes a mistake.
她每次犯错都卑躬屈膝、道歉过头。
The dog grovelled on the floor when it heard the angry shouting.
狗听到愤怒的喊声时，匍匐在地。
常表示在权势者面前极度顺从。
The servant grovelled before the king.
仆人在国王面前卑躬屈膝。
多用于请求原谅或恩惠。
He grovelled to his boss for the mistake.
他因错误向老板卑躬屈膝地道歉。
字面或比喻，表示极度卑微。
She was grovelling at his feet, begging for mercy.
她匍匐在他脚下，恳求宽恕。
Not this
He grovelled the manager for forgiveness.
Use this
He grovelled to the manager for forgiveness.
Grovel 是不及物动词，不能直接接宾语，需用介词 to 引出对象。
Not this
He grovelled that he was sorry.
Use this
He grovelled in apology.
Grovel 不能接 that 宾语从句，应使用介词短语或分句来表达道歉或谦卑的含义。
Focus on the distinctions below. Other candidates are kept compact until a reliable usage note is available.
在某人面前卑躬屈膝
He grovelled before the king, begging for mercy.
他在国王面前卑躬屈膝，乞求宽恕。
趴在某人脚下乞求
She grovelled at his feet, desperate to be forgiven.
她趴在他脚下，拼命想得到原谅。
低声下气地乞求原谅
I refuse to grovel for forgiveness.
我拒绝低声下气地乞求原谅。
趴在地上
The soldiers grovelled on the ground to avoid the gunfire.
士兵们趴在地上躲避炮火。
卑躬屈膝地道歉
He grovelled in apology after forgetting their anniversary.
他忘了他们的纪念日，卑躬屈膝地道歉。
在某人脚下卑躬屈膝；低声下气地求饶
He was willing to grovel at her feet to win her back.
他愿意在她脚下卑躬屈膝，只为挽回她。
卑躬屈膝的道歉；低声下气的赔礼
She sent a grovelling apology for the mistake.
她为这个错误发了一封低声下气的道歉信。
趴在地上摇尾乞怜；极度羞辱地求饶
The manager made the intern grovel in the dirt before accepting his excuse.
经理让实习生趴在地上摇尾乞怜之后才接受他的解释。
Use groveling naturally, then get feedback on meaning, tone, grammar, and phrasing.
Revisit a common error or keep this word in your review list.
联想记忆：grove（小树林）+ l，想象自己趴在小树林里爬行乞求，即 grovel（匍匐；卑躬屈膝）。
语域：mixed 常见场景：日常批评、公开道歉、文学或历史描写 该词表示“卑躬屈膝地讨好/道歉”时，通常带贬义，多用于日常口语、批评性评论或新闻报道；在较正式的书面或文学语境中，也可指“匍匐/趴在地上”。整体语域偏向混合，需根据搭配和语境判断。
按英式发音，grovel /ˈɡrɒvəl/ 与 novel /ˈnɒvəl/ 押韵。shovel /ˈʃʌvəl/、snivel /ˈsnɪvəl/、travel /ˈtrævəl/、marvel /ˈmɑːvəl/、navel /ˈneɪvəl/ 虽都以 -vel 结尾，但元音不同，不押韵。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.