gray literature

noun

: written material (such as a report) that is not published commercially or is not generally accessible

Examples of gray literature in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Until recently, information from rescue excavations was sequestered in a vast gray literature of reports published in Greek by the state archeological service. —Nick Romeo, The New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2023

There is no gray literature now: Everything is a magnet for immediate attention and misunderstanding. —James Heathers, The Atlantic, 23 Oct. 2021

Some organizations, such as Bellingcat, have blurred the line between journalism and intelligence by pioneering open-source techniques that exploit social media, commercial imagery, and gray literature. —Zachery Tyson Brown, Foreign Affairs, 9 Mar. 2021

Word History

First Known Use

1975, in the meaning defined above