grab bag

American  

noun

1. a container or receptacle from which a person at a party or the like draws a gift without knowing what it is.

2. any miscellaneous collection.

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grab bag British  

noun

1. a collection of miscellaneous things

2. a bag or other container from which gifts are drawn at random

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grab bag Idioms  

1. A miscellaneous collection, as in The meeting amounted to a grab bag of petty complaints. This term alludes to a container offered at a party or fair, where one dips in for a party favor or prize without knowing what one will get. [Mid-1800s]

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Etymology

Origin of grab bag

An Americanism dating back to 1850–55

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

grab bag

Markel didn’t help itself with a disappointing first-quarter profit report in late April that reflected weakness at the noninsurance businesses—a grab bag of about two dozen companies.

From Barron's ● May 8, 2026

But if you can’t get a grab bag, you can perhaps sip on an award-winning wine.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 24, 2026

Donaldson also juggles a loose grab bag of philanthropic efforts.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 3, 2026

“Perfect World” is the grab bag of the lot.

From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2025

We’re lucky that English, with its stretchy grammar and its giant grab bag of a vocabulary, gives us so much room for verbal play, if not anarchy.

From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner