grain

noun

\ ˈgrān

Definition of grain

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a(1) obsolete : a single small hard seed

(2) : a seed or fruit of a cereal grass : caryopsis

b : the seeds or fruits of various food plants including the cereal grasses and in commercial and statutory usage other plants (such as the soybean)

c : plants producing grain

2a(1) : a small hard particle or crystal

(2) : any of the particles produced in a photographic material by its development also : the size of such grains in the aggregate

(3) : an individual crystal in a metal

b : a minute portion or particle

c : the least amount possible a grain of truth

3a : kermes or a scarlet dye made from it

b : cochineal or a brilliant scarlet dye made from it

c : a fast dye

d archaic : color, tint

4a : a granulated surface or appearance

b : the outer or hair side of a skin or hide

5 : a unit of weight based on the weight of a grain of wheat taken as an average of the weight of grains from the middle of the ear — see Weights and Measures Table

6a : the stratification of the wood fibers in a piece of wood

b : a texture due to constituent particles or fibers the grain of a rock

c : the direction of threads in cloth

7 : tactile quality

8a : natural disposition : temper lying goes against my grain

b : a basic or characteristic quality

c : a prevalent ideology or convention teaching against the grain

grain

verb

grained; graining; grains

Definition of grain (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : ingrain

2 : to form into grains : granulate

3 : to paint in imitation of the grain of wood or stone

4 : to feed with grain

intransitive verb

: to become granular : granulate

Other Words from grain Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about grain

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Other Words from grain

Noun

grained \ ˈgrānd

\ adjective

grainless adjective

Verb

grainer noun

Examples of grain in a Sentence

Noun

bread made from whole wheat grain The machine grinds grain into flour. The farm grows a variety of grains. Anyone with a grain of sense knows that she's lying. There is not a grain of truth in what he said.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

As a councilman, Leone proudly went against the grain; often the council's lone dissenting voice. — Joshua Bowling, azcentral, "Six-term Peoria City Councilman Carlo Leone dies at 84 just months after resignation," 19 June 2019 But in California, so many stories go against that grain. — Soleil Ho, SFChronicle.com, "When being Asian American means bacon and eggs and hamburgers," 6 June 2019 His approach, based on bespoke research, gut feeling and a taste for going against the grain, divided opinion. — The Economist, "Neil Woodford, star fund-manager, comes a cropper," 6 June 2019 Going against the grain, YouTube is reportedly scaling back its original content plans. — Valentina Palladino, Ars Technica, "Bring in the ads—YouTube may let everyone watch Original shows, films," 28 Nov. 2018 Slice steak against the grain and chop into bite-size pieces. — Jennifer Rude Klett, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Meat & greet: It’s time to restore the butcher shop tradition," 5 June 2018 Slice the meat against the grain, pour the reserved juice over the sliced meat and serve. — San Antonio Express-News, "Recipe: Santa Maria Beef Tri-Tip with Fideos," 2 May 2018 Our guide to the Central Coast’s wine country The Santa Barbara County wine country goes against the grain. — Matt Jaffe, Los Angeles Magazine, "What to Drink, Eat, and See on a Weekend Wine Getaway to the Santa Ynez Valley," 26 Apr. 2018 The earthy colors and irregular grain would warm up and customize a traditionally sterile space, said New York interior designer Gia Sharp approvingly. — Kimberly Chrisman-campbell, WSJ, "Wooden Bath Tubs: More Appealing Than Ceramic?," 4 June 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Within 15 minutes, a portion of this radioactive dust — mostly grains the size of salt or sand — would begin to fall directly on the city. — Daily Intelligencer, "This Is What a Nuclear Bomb Looks Like," 12 June 2018 The raw flesh of the fish is opalescent, fine-grained and smooth and nearly translucent, with a flavor to match. — Ben Lowy, Smithsonian, "The Lionfish Have Invaded, But a Ragtag Army of Divers and Chefs Are Fighting Back," 23 May 2018 As in other full-size pickups at this price, the dashboard is largely made up of hard plastics, although their graining looks nice and most critical touch points inside the F-150 are made from softer materials. — Alexander Stoklosa, Car and Driver, "2018 Ford F-150 2.7L EcoBoost V-6 4x2 SuperCrew," 9 Mar. 2018 Very few interior panels are soft to the touch, but the vast expanses of hard plastic are nicely grained and don’t feel cheap. — Drew Dorian, Car and Driver, "2018 Hyundai Accent," 24 Jan. 2018 The official data were not fine-grained enough to reveal such patterns. — The Economist, "Punk scienceDo-it-yourself Science is taking off," 16 Dec. 2017 Because there were, on average, 20 routers in each station in the pilot, London’s data are quite fine-grained. — Henry Grabar, Slate Magazine, "A brilliant experiment is helping the London subway find out how people really travel.," 16 Oct. 2017 That said, his big, coarse-grained, penetrating sound carried forcefully to the back of the house. — John Von Rhein, chicagotribune.com, "Vocal sparks fly in Lyric Opera's riveting 'Rigoletto'," 8 Oct. 2017 Interior Features A simple dashboard is dressed up nicely with finely grained, soft-touch plastics and, on the Ultimate trim, open-pore wood veneer that looks upscale—although some materials aren’t as nice as those in rival luxury sedans. — Michael Simari, Car and Driver, "2018 Genesis G80," 3 Aug. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'grain.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.