grim

grim · adjective

imported

Definitions

adjective

  1. 1.

    Very serious or gloomy; depressing or worrying.

  2. 2.

    (of a person) Stern or forbidding in appearance.

  3. 3.

    Unpleasant or shocking.

  4. 4.

    (of humor) Dealing with death or suffering.

Phrases & expressions

  • •
    the Grim Reaper — A personification of death.
  • •
    grim determination — Resolute despite difficulties.
  • •
    hang on like grim death — To hold on very tightly.

Related words

Antonyms: bright, cheerful, pleasant
See also: bleak, gloomy, stern
Synonyms: bleak, gloomy, stern

Etymology

From Old English grimm ("fierce, savage, cruel"), from Proto-Germanic grimmaz. Related to German grimm ("fierce, furious").