grisly

[ griz-lee ]

/ ˈgrɪz li /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR grisly ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, gris·li·er, gris·li·est.

causing a shudder or feeling of horror; horrible; gruesome: a grisly murder.

formidable; grim: a grisly countenance.

Nearby words

Origin of grisly

before 1150; Middle English; Old English grislīc horrible; cognate with Old High German grīsenlīh

Related formsgris·li·ness, noun

Can be confusedgrisly gristly grizzled grizzly

grisly

[ gris-lee ]

/ ˈgrɪs li /

adjective, gris·li·er, gris·li·est. Obsolete.

gristly.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for grisly

He admitted responsibility without hesitation, and in meticulous, grisly detail.
The Myth of the Central Park Five|Edward Conlon|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
These grisly images drew a huge audience, and allowed that audience to indulge in righteous indignation.
How the Media Failed to Nail the NFL|Steve Almond|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the wake of such a grisly screw up, it is tempting to play the blame game.
Mary Fallin’s Killer Fiasco|Michelle Cottle|May 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The grisly footage obtained by BFMTV shows the French-speaking fighters arriving at a scene splayed with bodies.
French and Belgian Jihadists Boast About the Syrians They Slaughter|Tracy McNicoll|March 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Christine Pelisek talks to the man examining the grisly finds.
The Bone Collectors Get to Work at Florida’s Dozier School|Christine Pelisek|September 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He was only an acquaintance—one with a grisly shadow in his past—and it was best that he remain such.
The White Desert|Courtney Ryley Cooper
So, in all my wild imaginings the grisly fear is never far away.
The Drunkard|Cyril Arthur Edward Ranger Gull
Every mile now began to show the grisly, stinking signs of rinderpest.
The Matabele Campaign|R. S. S. Baden-Powell
The grisly fact has been recorded that five separate human legs lay upon the ground.
The Great Boer War|Arthur Conan Doyle
A more mercurial jovial fellow never set old Time at defiance, or laughed in the grisly face of Care.
Flora Lyndsay|Susanna Moodie

British Dictionary definitions for grisly

grisly

/ (ˈɡrɪzlɪ) /

adjective -lier or -liest

causing horror or dread; gruesome

Derived Formsgrisliness, noun

Word Origin for grisly

Old English grislic; related to Old Frisian grislik, Old High German grīsenlīh

xref

See grizzly

noun plural -lies

obsolete a variant spelling of grizzly

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

Word Origin and History for grisly

grisly

adj.

Old English grislic "horrible, dreadful," from root of grisan "to shudder, fear" (cf. Old Frisian grislik "horrible," Middle Dutch grisen "to shudder," Dutch griezelen, German grausen "to shudder, fear," Old High German grisenlik "horrible"), of unknown origin; Watkins connects it with the PIE root *ghrei- "to rub," on notion of "to grate on the mind." Cf. also gruesome, to which it probably is connected in some way.

grisly

adjective, gris·li·er, gris·li·est.

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Nearby words

Origin of grisly

grisly

adjective, gris·li·er, gris·li·est. Obsolete.

Examples from the Web for grisly

grisly

adjective -lier or -liest

Word Origin for grisly

xref

noun plural -lies

grisly