Grub Street

noun

\ˈgrəb-

\

Definition of Grub Street

: the world or category of needy literary hacks

Did You Know?

The original Grub Street was an address in London (it was renamed Milton Street in 1830) described by Dr. Samuel Johnson in his Dictionary of the English Language as "much inhabited by writers of small histories, dictionaries, and temporary poems." The term was applied figuratively to the dog-eat-dog world of pens-for-hire as early as 1630, and not surprisingly it became the subject of several novels. Writer Tobias Smollett, all too familiar with hackwork himself, described a Grub Street dinner party in his novel The Expedition of Humphry Clinker (1771). And the allusion to Grub Street still packed a punch in 1891 when George Gissing chose New Grub Street as the title of his realistic novel about intrigues of the Victorian literary world.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about Grub Street

Listen to Our Podcast about Grub Street

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Dictionary Entries near Grub Street

Statistics for Grub Street

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for Grub Street

The first known use of Grub Street was in 1630

See more words from the same year

Comments on Grub Street

What made you want to look up Grub Street? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

WORD OF THE DAY

mawkish

exaggeratedly or childishly emotional

Test Your Vocabulary

Words from Greek and Roman Mythology Quiz

Boreal comes from the name of the ancient Greek god of which wind?

Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

TAKE THE QUIZ

SCRABBLE® Sprint

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games