gristle

noun

gris·​tle ˈgri-səl  -zəl 

: cartilage

broadly : tough cartilaginous, tendinous, or fibrous matter especially in table meats

Examples of gristle in a Sentence

a cheap piece of meat, full of gristle and fat

Recent Examples on the Web

The program was a notch off-center, but a Trifonov bullseye: B-side Tchaikovsky, a smattering of Chopin waltzes and the Barber sonata, another chapter in Trifonov’s American story but relayed with Prokofiev and Shostakovich’s gristle. —Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune, 20 Nov. 2024

Bites of a Reuben were interrupted by a glob of fatty gristle; the au jus in the Papa Eddie, a French dip with otherwise good brisket, was unbearably salty. —Maura Judkis, Washington Post, 31 July 2024

Sichuanese jerky is all about the tendon and the gristle. —Jiayang Fan, The New Yorker, 25 Apr. 2024

But what about those unavoidable cinematic stinkers that rankled and vexed, worthy of their own specifically notable ire as visually flavorless gristle or toxically soporific veneers masquerading as motion pictures? —Nicholas Bell, SPIN, 5 Dec. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Middle English gristil, from Old English gristle; akin to Middle Low German gristel gristle

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

gristle

noun

gris·​tle ˈgris-əl 

: tough chewy matter in meat served as food that is composed usually of cartilage

gristly

ˈgris-(ə-)lē

adjective

Medical Definition

gristle

noun

gris·​tle ˈgris-əl 

: cartilage