grungy

adjective

grun·​gy ˈgrən-jē 

grungier; grungiest

1

: shabby or dirty in character or condition

2

: characteristic of grunge music or fashion

Synonyms

• bedraggled
• befouled
• begrimed
• bemired
• besmirched
• black
• blackened
• cruddy
• dingy
• dirty
• draggled
• dusty
• filthy
• foul
• grimy
• grotty [chiefly British]
• grubby
• mucky
• muddy
• nasty
• smudged
• smutty
• soiled
• sordid
• stained
• sullied
• unclean
• uncleanly

Examples of grungy in a Sentence

After working in the garden all day, I felt sweaty and grungy.

a grungy pair of jeans

Recent Examples on the Web

Melding the perils of modern video streaming and the grungy, lo-fi internet of yesteryear, the game’s core loop involves hosting live streams of increasingly risqué supernatural content. —Lewis Gordon, Vulture, 8 Jan. 2025

The cinematography by Teck Zee Tan is also stellar, relying on evocative lens flares and rich blues to add style to this grungy war film. —Robert Daniels, New York Times, 27 Dec. 2024

One’s eye quickly gets lost gazing at endless walls of brown, gray and mauve that make up the abstract architecture of its grungy, sci-fi setting. —The New York Times, New York Times, 27 Dec. 2024

But the sight of a down-and-out Dan Aykroyd in a Santa suit eating a slab of salmon through his grungy cotton-candy beard fills us with the holiday spirit. —Chris Nashawaty, EW.com, 11 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

origin unknown

First Known Use

1965, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

grungy

adjective

grun·​gy ˈgrən-jē 

grungier; grungiest

: being in a shabby or dirty condition