Entry · catalog no. 0310

grimy

/ — /pending

adjective · northeast · 2026

✓ Verified

Ruthless, shady, and underhanded; also, of music, raw and darkly authentic in the East Coast street tradition.

“That was a grimy move, going behind your own man's back.”

Origin & Attribution

1990s New York hip-hop, from older 'grime' meaning dirt; used as both insult and compliment depending on tone.

Region of origin

West

Midwest

N.East

South

The Northeast

northeast · 2026

Spoken by

northeast

$GRIMYThe Record · cultural traction

▲ Rising

0 yrs

ahead of the mainstream

12/100

peak cultural energy

Introduced to English by the culture — logged here before the mainstream caught on.

Cultural usage — the recordMainstream search interest

First used

2026

in the culture

Recorded here

2026

point of first record

Cultural energy indexed from documented usage, search interest, and citation frequency. The recorded date is the archive’s permanent point of record.

Hear it spoken

By region — how it actually sounds

@bxgriot

The Bronx, NY

@phillyanne

Philadelphia, PA

Contribute your pronunciation

Citations & Sources

■

N.O.R.E. — "Grimey," documented in hip-hop · 1990s

submitted

■

The Right Rhymes — Hip-Hop Dictionary, "grimy"

submitted