Definition, synonyms and related words
simple past tense of grow
"I grew when I heard the thunder crash so loudly that my teeth chattered uncontrollably."
Alternative form of grue (“shudder with fear”)
In plain English: Grew is the past tense of grow, meaning something got bigger or more developed over time.
"The children grew taller every year."
Usage: Use "grew" to describe the past tense of growing or increasing in size, age, or intensity. Do not use it to mean shuddering with fear, which is a rare dialectal variant spelled "grue."
Grew comes from the Old English word grēow, which was originally the past tense form of the verb to grow. This term traveled into Middle English and eventually modern English while retaining its original meaning of increasing in size or number.