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Glite Dictionary
🎬 A cheap cinema 🩸 Gritty and violent
grindhouse

grindhouse

8 9.3
A movie theater that shows cheap, shocking films often with violent scenes
  • noun
  • /ˈɡraɪnˌhaʊs/
  • NSFW
translation icon : grindhouse
  • Over at the Balboa on Fourth Avenue, Walnut used the grand old girl to screen the same exploitative fare as its other grindhouses, marking what is to some an ignoble period for the one-time crown jewel of downtown theaters.
  • grindhouse movie
  • grindhouse film
  • grindhouse theater

Examples

  • The trailer was edited to look like something from a grindhouse film.

    Blog text (20)

  • The grindhouse exploitation connotations of the title of House at the End of the Street are impossible to miss.

    Blog text (5)

  • As downtown San Diego became increasingly seedy, the company's grindhouse theaters began opening at noon and closing at midnight.

    Blog text (8)

  • In the '70s, Miranda ran a string of downtown grindhouse movie theaters and owned several flophouse hotels (as well as the Hotel San Diego).

    Blog text (8)

  • The old grindhouse down the street is known for showing cult classic horror films every Friday night.

  • Many fans appreciate the unique atmosphere of a grindhouse, where low-budget films often push the boundaries of traditional cinema.

  • He loves the thrill of watching outrageous action films at the local grindhouse theater, despite their graphic content.

Synonyms

flea pit
vsgrindhouse
  • Archaic
1 8.6

A small dirty cinema or theater in very bad condition

focuses on showing low-budget sensational films rather than physical condition

Antonyms

arthouse
1 6.9

A cinema or film that shows artistic, independent movies for a smaller audience

Surface Forms

grindhouse singular
grindhouses plural

Morphology

grindhouse = grind + house (semi-transparent) = grind + house

The components 'grind' and 'house' are visible, but the specialized meaning 'a cinema showing low-budget/exploitation films' is a lexicalized sense not directly predictable from the parts.

Etymology

Grindhouse comes from the English word grind, which means 'to do something again and again' or 'to press', and house, meaning 'building'. These theaters would 'grind out' cheap, shocking films in nonstop showings, so a grindhouse is a place known for rough, low-budget movies.