grab bag

noun

1

: a receptacle (such as a bag) containing small articles which are to be drawn (as at a party or fair) without being seen

2

: a miscellaneous collection : potpourri

Synonyms

• agglomerate
• agglomeration
• alphabet soup
• assortment
• botch
• clutter
• collage
• crazy quilt
• farrago
• gallimaufry
• gumbo
• hash
• hodgepodge
• hotchpotch
• jambalaya
• jumble
• jungle
• litter
• macédoine
• medley
• mélange
• menagerie
• miscellanea
• miscellany
• mishmash
• mixed bag
• montage
• motley
• muddle
• olio
• olla podrida
• omnium-gatherum
• pastiche
• patchwork
• patchwork quilt
• potpourri
• ragbag
• ragout
• rummage
• salad
• salmagundi
• scramble
• shuffle
• smorgasbord
• stew
• tumble
• variety
• welter

Examples of grab bag in a Sentence

Congress has proposed a grab bag of tax cuts.

the festival featured a grab bag of independent films from widely disparate genres

Recent Examples on the Web

With so much unfinished business and time running short, turning the defense bill into a grab bag can be a slippery slope. —Peter Sullivan, Axios, 23 Sep. 2024

But a grab bag of authoritarian regimes around the world (notably Russia, China, and Iran) and rhetorically leftist regimes in the region (Nicaragua, Honduras, Cuba, and Bolivia) have applauded Maduro’s reconsecration in power. —Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 12 Sep. 2024

Further Reading iPhone 15 and 15 Pro review: The final form The iPhone 16 and 16 Pro are expected to continue this pacing, with a grab bag of improvements to existing features but nothing too radical. —Samuel Axon, Ars Technica, 5 Sep. 2024

There’s a grab bag of other stuff, too, most notably an expansion of financial aid for first-time home buyers. —Binyamin Appelbaum, The Mercury News, 29 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1855, in the meaning defined at sense 1