Evolution of the gripe word

   Every word in the dictionary has an evolution, but in 2017, gripe is the most recognized “in your face” word that instantly produces a certain notice to everyone.

   Oddly, one of the original meanings referred to the use of the 21^st century instantaneously identified acronym IBS, therefore proof of a sort that gastrointestinal ailments were a plague way back when gripe referred to an illness that affected the human intestines.

   From grasping something tightly, to securing the moorings of a boat, the evolution of the word gripe, whether noun or verb, currently takes on the most “common man” meaning, a petty complaint.

    There is an indication that in 2017, this “common man” word, gripe is used most frequently in the field of journalism, which some might say, means a step back from the most recent 20^th century higher journalism standards regarding word use that may not have been used in a descriptive written by a New York Times or Washington Post correspondent.
   For some reason, anyone in a power position in industry or commerce rarely evokes this word gripe but in private conversation the current colloquial meaning is alive and well.
   However, in 2017 the political scene is fast evolving regarding use of this ultimate “common man” word, gripe.
   Although gripe is a populist must, yet this is a word seldom used by the political establishment that POTUS 45 refers to as the “swamp.” 

   Nevertheless, the evolutionary of “common man” words is a good thing in many ways, perhaps more due to the influence of the so-called populist agenda that wants more of the “tell it as it is” talk, rather than papered over versions, like the synonym for gripe, petty complaint, most often used in the context of a “politically correct” conversation.

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gripe  

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gripe#Synonyms  

https://www.etymonline.com/word/gripe 

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/gripe