Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

grippy

1 American  
[grip-ee] / ˈgrɪp i /

adjective

grippier, grippiest
  1. afflicted with the grippe.


grippy 2 American  
[grip-ee] / ˈgrɪp i /

adjective

Chiefly Scot.
grippier, grippiest
  1. stingy; avaricious.


grippy British  
/ ˈgrɪpɪ /

adjective

  1. (of a material) having adhesive qualities

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of grippy1

grippe + -y 1

Origin of grippy2

First recorded in 1800–10; grip + -y 1


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.

See Examples For:

It even uses thinner shoelaces, using a grippy sawtooth pattern that helps them stay tied.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 19, 2026

“Your hands are supposed to slip out. Marshawn had sort of grippy gloves, and they would stick to my cast. That was the most painful thing.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 4, 2025

Ioan fell on a bend that had been dry and grippy the day before.

From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2025

I took measures to stay safe — really grippy hiking boots, venturing out only in the daylight hours, communicating often with my husband.

From New York Times ● Apr. 18, 2023

Her knees bent under the force of braking, her grippy shoes squealing as they slipped across the riding surface, her body turning almost parallel to the ground.

From "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld

One change that I really like is that each analog stick has a textured center, making them grippier than the comparatively smooth sticks on the Pro.

From The Verge ● Sep. 12, 2022

But a safety car came out and Ferrari brought Sainz into the pits for fresher, grippier soft tires.

From Seattle Times ● Jul. 3, 2022

When he returned to the track, the team concentrated on long runs with high fuel loads and used only the hard 'C2' tyres while others explored the faster and grippier C3s and C4s.

From BBC ● Mar. 12, 2021

On average, he found the surviving anoles seemed to have much bigger, grippier toe pads than the population had averaged before, as if those with less sticky feet had been carried away by the storms.

From New York Times ● Apr. 27, 2020

This is essential, because a scratched-up surface makes for a grippier base.

From Slate ● Aug. 17, 2019

“When Nordic skiing is frozen boilerplate, that makes for great fat biking — the fastest, grippiest conditions,” Acheson said.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 9, 2022

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

Get a word

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Just like flashcards, but way more fun

Don't take our word for it. Leave the boring studying behind and join VocabTrainer today. You'll learn even faster and never look back.

Take me to Vocabulary.com