gritty
Americanadjective
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consisting of, containing, or resembling grit; sandy.
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resolute and courageous; plucky.
adjective
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courageous; hardy; resolute
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of, like, or containing grit
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of gritty
Explanation
Gritty things have a rough texture that makes them feel like they're coated with sand. After a day at the beach, you might come home with gritty arms and legs. A baking project involving corn meal might result in a gritty counter and a gritty kitchen floor, and one shake of your dirty dog will leave you with a gritty couch. Grit is a tiny particle of sand or stone, and gritty means "covered in grit." A second meaning of gritty is "showing bravery and spirit." When you stick with something no matter how scary or difficult it is, that's gritty.
Vocabulary lists containing gritty
Unit 4: Powerful Openings
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Baseball in April
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"Earthquake"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Gritty paddle surfaces and the influence of topspin-trained tennis interlopers has accelerated pace and rewarded hitters who put extra English on the ball.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 7, 2025
But the moment other people started to bad-mouth Gritty, talking about how terrifying, creepy, and—dare I say—weird the Flyers’ orange, googly-eyed mascot was, we changed our tune and fast.
From Slate • Aug. 6, 2024
Apparently, mascot Gritty now wearing earmuffs to avoid coach John Tortorella’s colorful language in news conferences.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 23, 2024
Douglas has a theory that bluegrass makes mainstream inroads in times of political turmoil, beginning with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” during the Vietnam War.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 3, 2023
Side note: I’d wanted her to call the channel Knitty Gritty, but she broke my heart and went with Yarn Star because it sounded like “yarn store” spoken with a heavy Southern twang.
From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
