gritty
Americanadjective
-
grittier,
comparative
-
grittiest
superlative
-
consisting of, containing, or resembling grit; sandy.
-
resolute and courageous; plucky.
adjective
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courageous; hardy; resolute
-
of, like, or containing grit
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
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
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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.
See Examples For:
The 39-year-old former undisputed heavyweight champion last fought in May, when he earned a gritty win over Rico Verhoeven before vacating his titles.
From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026
I tell students how we got news from “Life” magazine and gritty movie newsreels.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026
Instead of the suburban setting common to so many cartoons — including Nickelodeon’s “Doug” — “Hey Arnold!” was set firmly in the inner city, a vibrantly gritty amalgam of Seattle, Portland and Brooklyn.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
The 1983 movie, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, portrays the fight as gritty and grounded, taking place during a rainstorm where mud flies as fast as fists.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
We walked out on the gritty surface of the dump.
From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam
Though it was always grittier than the beaches and rainforests that draw millions of tourists, residents said that until the past few years it felt like a relatively safe place to live.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
Fans of Marvel’s grittier side should like “Punisher,” and “Maul” is cool, but is that enough to justify a subscription?
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 30, 2026
But this was a tougher, grittier version of the Hoosiers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 20, 2026
Zahra Ahmedi told the BBC's David White that the subject matter was getting "slightly grittier".
From BBC ● Apr. 11, 2025
They were nearing the edge of Lkossa, a grittier part of the city littered with old crates, debris, and other filth.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
However this story ends, U.S. skier Lindsey Vonn has to go down as one of the greatest, grittiest competitors in the history of her sport or any other.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 4, 2026
Crawley at least found form with the grittiest of knocks, adding 78 with Joe Root then 68 with Harry Brook, defending well and attacking loose balls.
From Barron's ● Dec. 20, 2025
"Dead City" is very interesting because I find it to be the grittiest one, the most hard-nosed.
From Salon ● Mar. 3, 2024
It might be hard for Cronin to consider sitting the team’s grittiest player even if he’s significantly less than 100%, but such a move would have dual benefits.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 13, 2022
She came out of Berwind, which was one of the grittiest and roughest towns in the county.
From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
