adjective
dingy
DIHN-jee
adjective
1
Dark, dull, and lacking in cleanliness or brightness.
"They rented a dingy little apartment above the laundromat."
"The hallway lights had gone dingy and yellow with age."
How to Use Dingy
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishDull, grubby, and run-down looking.
Common mistake
Don't confuse with "dinghy" (a small boat) — they're pronounced quite differently.
Easily confused with
Common pairings
dingy room
dingy alley
dingy motel
Word Forms
dingier comparative, dingier comparative, dingiest superlative, dingiest superlative
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They rented a _____ little apartment above the laundromat.
Etymology
From a dialectal English word meaning "dirty", likely related to Old English "dung".