grain
/ɡɹeɪn/ noun B2- The harvested seeds of various grass food crops, especially wheat, maize, rye, barley, and rice. · Near-synonym: corn (broad sense, maize and others)· We stored a thousand tons of grain for the winter.
- Similar seeds from any food crop, e.g., buckwheat, amaranth, quinoa. · Near-synonym: corn (broad sense, maize and others)
- A single seed of a food crop, especially a cereal grass crop. · a grain of wheat· grains of oat
- The crops from which grain is harvested. · The fields were planted with grain.
- A linear texture of a material or surface. · Cut along the grain of the wood.· He doesn't like to shave against the grain.
- A single particle of a substance. · a grain of sand· a grain of salt
- The English grain of ¹⁄₅₇₆₀ troy pound or ¹⁄₇₀₀₀ pound avoirdupois, now exactly 64.79891 mg.
- The metric, carat, or pearl grain of ¹⁄₄ carat used for measuring precious stones and pearls, now exactly 50 mg.
Plural grains
Phrasal verbs and expressions
From the library
Caderousse, then, was, as usual, at his place of observation before the door, his eyes glancing listlessly from a piece of closely shaven grass—on which some fowls were industriously, though fruitlessly, endeavoring to turn up some grain or insect suited to their palate—to the deserted road, which led away to the north and south, when he was aroused by the shrill voice of his wife, and grumbling to himself as he went, he mounted to her chamber, first taking care, however, to set the entrance door wide open, as an invitation to any chance traveller who might be passing.
THE ANTS were spending a fine winter’s day drying grain collected in the summertime.
A MOLE, a creature blind from birth, once said to his Mother: “I am sure than I can see, Mother!” In the desire to prove to him his mistake, his Mother placed before him a few grains of frankincense, and asked, “What is it?” The young Mole said, “It is a pebble.” His Mother exclaimed: “My son, I am afraid that you are not only blind, but that you have lost your sense of smell.”
“There is no occasion to move yet, my son,” she replied; “the man who only sends to his friends to help him with his harvest is not really in earnest.” The owner of the field came again a few days later and saw the wheat shedding the grain from excess of ripeness.
Other matches
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