grub ‧ by /ˈɡrʌbi/ BrE AmE adjective
[ Date: 1600-1700 ; Origin: ⇨ ↑ grub 1 ; because places full of grubs are dirty ]
1 . fairly dirty:
a grubby handkerchief
a gang of grubby kids
2 . grubby behaviour or activity is morally unpleasant:
the grubby details of his financial dealings
3 . grubby hands/paws/mitts informal used to talk about someone touching something or becoming involved in it when you do not want them to:
Keep your grubby paws to yourself!
I bet he can’t wait to get his grubby hands on my money!
—grubbiness noun [uncountable]
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THESAURUS
▪ dirty not clean:
His clothes were untidy and he had dirty hands.
▪ filthy very dirty:
Each year filthy water causes millions of cases of illness.
▪ muddy covered with mud:
It had been raining hard and the path was muddy.
▪ dusty covered with dust:
the dusty shelves in the attic
▪ greasy covered with oil or grease:
Greasy food is bad for your health.
▪ grubby ( also mucky British English ) informal fairly dirty and needing to be cleaned or washed:
He was wearing a grubby white T-shirt.
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mucky fingers
▪ grimy covered with thick dirt or dirt that has been there a long time:
I couldn’t see much out of the grimy windows of the train.
▪ dingy /ˈdɪndʒi/ looking dark, dirty, and unpleasant. Used about rooms, houses, and buildings:
We worked in a dingy little office behind the station.
▪ polluted used about land, water, or air that has been made dirty:
85% of city dwellers breathe heavily polluted air.
▪ contaminated made dirty by a dangerous substance or bacteria:
The virus is mainly spread through contaminated food.
▪ squalid /ˈskwɒləd, ˈskwɒlɪd $ ˈskwɑː-/ formal extremely dirty and unpleasant. Used about the place or conditions in which someone lives:
People are living in squalid conditions, with little water and no sanitation.
▪ unhygienic /ʌnhaɪˈdʒiːnɪk◂ $ -ˈdʒe-, -ˈdʒiː-/ formal used about dirty conditions that are likely to cause disease, especially conditions in kitchens, restaurants, and hospitals:
The food was prepared under unhygienic conditions.
▪ unsanitary ( also insanitary British English ) formal used about dirty conditions that are likely to cause disease, especially because there is not a good system for getting rid of waste:
People’s health is being threatened by overcrowded and insanitary homes.
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They work for long hours in unsanitary conditions.
▪ soiled formal made dirty, especially by waste from your body:
Soiled nappies should be changed as quickly as possible.