A sound that is unpleasant and harsh to hear, or a framework of bars or wires close together; making you annoyed or irritated.
From Old French 'grate' (grill, framework), from Latin 'crates' (wicker, hurdle). The verb 'grate' (to annoy) comes separately from the scraping sound of grinding, probably imitative.
Your teeth can 'grate' when they scrape together, a sound can be 'grating' on the ears, and something physically blocks you through a 'grating'—the word brilliantly captures friction in three different ways!
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.