grunge

Meaning: a style of rock music that appeared in Seattle in the late 1980's

For example:

Grunge is a mix of punk rock and heavy metal, but the singing is usually more of a lazy drawl than punk's sneering, angry snarl.
Most people think the greatest grunge band was the Kurt Cobain group called Nirvana.

Origin: Probably comes from "grungy", which appeared in the 1960's, meaning dirty or grimy, and possibly suggested by combining grubby and dingy. Grunge musicians created "dirty" sounds rather than the "clean" sounds of pop music.

Quick Quiz:

If someone asks you if you like grunge, they're asking you if you like

a style of rock music
a variety of cheese
a checked fabric used to make shirts

Discuss: grunge

Slang of the Day

This entry is in the following categories:

Slang/G
Slang/Music
Slang/Quizzes/Music