grim

Universal Words adjective (grimmer, grimmest) 1 looking or sounding very serious: a grim face / look / smile * She looked grim. * with a look of grim determination on his face * He set about the task with grim concentration. * grim-faced policemen 2 unpleasant and depressing: grim news * We face the grim prospect of still higher unemployment. * Despite the grim forecast, the number of deaths was slightly down on last year. * The outlook is pretty grim. * This latest attack is a grim reminder of how vulnerable our airports are to terrorist attack. * Booth paints a grim picture of life in the next century. * a grim struggle for survival * Things are looking grim for workers in the building industry. 3 (of a place or building) not attractive; depressing: The house looked grim and dreary in the rain. * the grim walls of the prison 4 [notbeforenoun] (BrE, informal) ill: I feel pretty grim this morning. 5 [notusuallybeforenoun] (BrE, informal) of very low quality: Their performance was fairly grim, I'm afraid! grimly adverb: 'It won't be easy,' he said grimly. * grimly determined grimness noun [U]: The novel depicts the grimness of life for the unemployed in Salford. IDIOMS hang / hold on for / like grim death (BrE) (also hang / hold on for dear life AmE, BrE) (informal) to hold sb/sth very tightly because you are afraid