grubby
/ˈɡɹʌbi/adjective, noun
grubby is spelled G-R-U-B-B-Y: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,943rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, grubby means “Dirty, unwashed, unclean” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in grubby?
| Letters | 6: G-R-U-B-B-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 37,943rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is grubby?
Grubby appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,943rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce grubby?
- /ˈɡɹʌbi/
- /ˈɡɹʊbi/
Grubby has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-grubby.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of grubby
- grubbier comparative
- grubbiest superlative
- grubbies plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does grubby mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Dirty, unwashed, unclean.
He's a grubby little boy, always playing around by the stream.
- 2
Disreputable, sordid.
- 3
Having grubs in it.
noun
- 1
USAny species of Cottus; a sculpin.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Grubby in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | crasseux , véreux |
| German | schmutzig, schmuddelig , madig, wurmstichig |
| Portuguese | encardido |
| Spanish | mugroso, sucio, mugriento, inmundo , pulgoso, agusanado |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does grubby come from?
From grub + -y.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).