cereal

1 of 2

adjective

ce·​re·​al ˈsir-ē-əl 

: relating to grain or to the plants that produce it

also : made of grain

cereal

2 of 2

noun

1

: a plant (such as a grass) yielding starchy grain suitable for food

also : its grain

2

: a prepared foodstuff of grain (such as oatmeal or cornflakes)

Did you know?

Cereal Has Roots in Roman Myth

The Roman goddess Ceres, the equivalent of the Greek Demeter, was a calm goddess who didn't take part in the quarrels of the other gods. Her particular responsibility was the food-giving plants, and for that reason the food grains came to carry her name. Cereals of the ancient Romans included wheat, barley, spelt, oats, and millet—but not corn (maize), which was a cereal of the Americas.

Examples of cereal in a Sentence

Noun

Wheat and barley are common cereals.

Some kinds of cereal have a lot of added sugar.

Some cereals have a lot of added sugar.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The fourth flavor, Supermoon, is a retired flavor that’s returning to scoop shops and pints, known for having a cereal milk flavor with marshmallows, candied violet and plenty of glittery moon dust. —Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024

Stew Leonard’s, a supermarket chain that operates stores in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey, now has 24 cereal flavors or types, down from 49 in 2019. —Anne D'innocenzio, Quartz, 12 Feb. 2024

On the opposite side are mixed-media, multilevel photo-collages that include cereal imagery among many other commercial visuals. —Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 5 Jan. 2024

With one client, cereal brand Magic Spoon, conference rooms in its New York headquarters are themed after different cereal flavors. —Paige McGlauflin, Fortune, 3 Nov. 2023

Many of us grew up starting the day with cereal, toast, bagels, or the occasional piece of bacon, but experts now warn against consuming those sorts of sugary, unrefined foods first thing. —Hannah Coates, Glamour, 10 Nov. 2023

Once upon a nostalgic American time, breakfast was cereal. —Emily Heil, Washington Post, 24 Oct. 2023

Pebbles, the cereal brand that makes Fruity Pebbles and Cocoa Pebbles among other products, is expanding their stake in the breakfast game by making Fruity Pebbles and Cocoa Pebbles flavored waffles. —Sam Burros, Peoplemag, 23 Aug. 2023

According to other research, Pompeii residents consumed large quantities of cereal foods, such as grains and, potentially, bread from the city’s many bakeries. —Matt Hrodey, Discover Magazine, 5 July 2023

Noun

Some cereal brands will get you there in a single bowl. —Daryl Austin, USA TODAY, 23 Apr. 2024

One recent morning, my young son, Wolfgang, mixed liquids — orange juice, ketchup, old coffee — into the warm milk and globs of solids left over in his morning cereal bowl. —Chloé Cooper Jones Emily Woo Zeller Krish Seenivasan Zachary Mouton, New York Times, 19 Apr. 2024

By Armani Syed April 17, 2024 12:16 PM EDT Food and beverage giant Nestlé adds sugar and honey to its infant milk and cereal products in developing countries but not in European markets, according to a new report published Wednesday. —Armani Syed, TIME, 17 Apr. 2024

The space is also home to her favorite vintage cereal ads and another one of her beloved collections. —Natalia Senanayake, Peoplemag, 16 Apr. 2024

San Diego’s food increases are in line with worldwide issues, such as cereal prices affected by the Russia-Ukraine war and beef increases tied to drought in the southwestern U.S. —Phillip Molnar, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Apr. 2024

Kraft macaroni and cheese maker Kraft Heinz, cereal company WK Kellogg, and Kellanova, which sells Pringles chips, are among the food companies ratcheting up discounts after a years-long hiatus during the pandemic, investment bank Jefferies said in an April 3 research note. —Jessica Dinapoli, The Christian Science Monitor, 9 Apr. 2024

To the company, the name was an attempt to create a brand as unique as, say, the cereal brands Cap’n Crunch and Catalina Crunch. —Tim Carman, Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2024

Solar Viewer Workshop, 11 a.m. at Turkey Run State Park: Bring a cereal box to the park’s nature center to learn about sun safety and make your won solar viewer. —Karl Schneider, The Indianapolis Star, 5 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

borrowed from French & Latin; French céréale, borrowed from Latin Ceriālis, Cereālis "of the goddess Ceres, of wheat or bread," from Cerer-, Cerēs ceres + -ālis -al entry 1

Note: The derivation of Ceriālis, Cereālis is unclear, as formation directly from the noun does not look possible. M. Leumann (Lateinische Laut- und Formenlehre, Munich, 1977, p. 180) suggests as the base an earlier *Cerrius, from *Cerzios, syncopated from a possessive adjective *Cerez-ios. A putative *Cerriālis would have been re-formed to Ceriālis, then Cereālis, after Cerēs.

Noun

derivative of cereal entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

1818, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1832, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing cereal

• cereal leaf beetle

Kids Definition

cereal

1 of 2 adjective

ce·​re·​al ˈsir-ē-əl 

: relating to grain or to the plants that produce it

also : made of grain

cereal

2 of 2 noun

1

: a plant (as a grass) that produces starchy grain suitable for food

also : its grain

2

: a prepared food (as oatmeal or cornflakes) of grain

Etymology

Adjective

derived from Latin cerealis "of grain," literally, "of Ceres," from Ceres (name of Roman goddess of grain)

Medical Definition

cereal

1 of 2 adjective

ce·​re·​al ˈsir-ē-əl 

: relating to grain or to the plants that produce it

also : made of grain

cereal

2 of 2 noun

1

: a plant (as a grass) yielding farinaceous grain suitable for food

also : its grain

2

: a prepared foodstuff of grain