grizzled
"When the show made its debut in 1984, Mr. Johnson was a has-been — or never-quite-was — movie star, which helped give his character a grizzled, disappointed element of soulfulness."
The following definition would apply for the word "grizzled" in the sentence above?
grizzled
verb [I] DISAPPROVING
(especially of a young child) to cry continually but not very loudly, or to complain all the time:
The baby was cutting a tooth and grizzled all day long.
They're always grizzling (= complaining) about how nobody invites them anywhere.
Grizzled can mean "disheveled" or "rough-around-the-edges". In the above sentence, the meaning would be more like "rough-around-the-edges".
I've never, ever heard the definition you cited, Leonardo.
Look it up again.
This is the definition the CALD gives for "grizzled":
grizzled
adjective LITERARY
having hair that is grey or becoming grey:
Grizzled veterans in uniform gathered at the war monument.
It's the same in the American Heritage Dictionary:
griz·zle (grzl)
tr. & intr.v. griz·zled, griz·zling, griz·zles
To make or become gray.
n.
The color of a grizzled animal.
A grizzled animal.
Archaic.. Gray hair.
adj.
Gray.
Grizzled.
[From Middle English grisel, gray, from Old French, diminutive of gris, gray. See grisaille.]
That first definition is unknown to me. I suspect it's specific to a certain area or dialect. Not mine, though. Grizzled as in graying is the only one I know. That's where the grizzly bear gets its name.
Yes, Uriel. I've found the definition you've just written, but do you think it is the right definition for the sentence I first cited?
Leonardo - you're confusing verbs and adjectives.
In the sentence you give 'grizzled' is an adjective.
Okay, the CALD does give the first definition - the one cited by Leonardo - for the verb "[to] grizzle". That said, I've never heard of this definition before.
The definition of "grizzled", as used in the sentence in question, is this one:
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?dict=CALD&key=34552 , which is the one that Uriel gave.
Lazar, the point is:
The text I cited refers to Don Johnson (the onetime Miami Vice star).
I don't think he had grey hair in the eighties when the program was shot. (http://www.fiftiesweb.com/tv/miami-vice-dj-pmta.jpg).
That said, I believe Pabz was right when he said: "Grizzled can mean "disheveled" or "rough-around-the-edges"."
Below is an article from Urban Dictionary:
<1. Grizzled
Worse than grundy. The result of being exposed to something terrible for a long period of time and having the results show through your appearance and state of mind.
Mainly used when referring to a sailor.
I met the most grizzled harbor master in Maine.>
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Grizzled
<<That said, I believe Pabz was right when he said: "Grizzled can mean "disheveled" or "rough-around-the-edges".">>
That's true. Quite often (maybe even most of the time), "grizzled" is used in that broader sense.