# What does ‘a grey area’ mean?

To “a grey area” means to something that isn't clearly right or wrong. A modern idiom, not in Brewer's 1898; the image is of a shade between black and white.

## What it means

- A modern idiom, not in Brewer's 1898; the image is of a shade between black and white.

## Action steps

1. Common in ethical, legal, and policy discussion.
2. Example: That expense is a grey area under the rules.

## Sources

- [Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898) — Internet Archive scan](https://archive.org/details/brewers-dictionary-of-phrase-and-fable)

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