A derogatory slur for a person, historically used as an ethnic insult against Italian or Greek immigrants.
From 'grease' + 'ball'; the term emerged in early 20th-century America as a xenophobic slur, combining the stereotype of Southern European cuisine heavy in olive oil with the offensive '-ball' suffix used in many ethnic slurs of that era.
This word is a powerful reminder of how language can be weaponized—during immigration waves, cruel nicknames stuck to entire groups of people based on their food or appearance, and some of these insults remained in dictionaries for decades. It's now considered offensive and outdated, but understanding its history helps us recognize how prejudice gets embedded in words.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.