elbow grease elbow grease {n.} Exertion; effort; energy. "You'll have to use a little more elbow grease to get these windows clean," Mother said to Ed. Categories: add yours {n.} Source: A Dictionary of American Idioms by A. Makkai, M.T. Boatner, J.E. Gates © 2024 » In RussianTo section: E Subscribe to: American IdiomsIdioms feedEnglish languageHome page and general feed Comment on this entry