penny dreadful

noun, plural penny dreadfuls. Chiefly British.

a cheap, sensational novel of adventure, crime, or violence; dime novel.

Origin of penny dreadful

First recorded in 1870–75

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

Examples from the Web for penny-dreadful

Of course you may call it a trap and all that sort of penny-dreadful rot; but what other way had I to see you?
The Eddy|Clarence L. Cullen
Then look at Brigham Young's penny-dreadful tyranny in Utah, with real blood.
The Woman in Black|Edmund Clerihew Bentley
The wildest flight of fancy of an irresponsible novelist had never created such a character in penny-dreadful fiction.
The Dark Star|Robert W. Chambers
Mother doesnt allow me to read any penny-dreadful story papers, magazines or books.
The Girls of Central High on the Stage|Gertrude W. Morrison

Why did he not now emulate the penny-dreadful heroes and say "My darling!"
The Treasure of Heaven|Marie Corelli

British Dictionary definitions for penny-dreadful

penny-dreadful

noun plural -fuls

British informal a cheap, often lurid or sensational book or magazine

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