variants
or less commonly grey
1
a
: of the color gray
b
: tending toward gray
blue-gray eyes
c
: dull in color
2
: having the hair gray : hoary
3
: clothed in gray
4
b
: prosaically ordinary : dull, uninteresting
the boring, gray dullness of government—
P. J. O'Rourke
P. J. O'Rourke5
: having an intermediate and often vaguely defined position, condition, or character
an ethically gray area
grayly
adverb
grayness
noun
variants
or less commonly grey
1
: any of a series of neutral colors ranging between black and white
2
: something (such as an animal, garment, cloth, or spot) of a gray color
3
a
: a soldier in the Confederate army during the American Civil War
b
often capitalized
: the Confederate army
variants
or less commonly grey
grayed also greyed; graying also greying; grays also greys
1
: to become gray
2
: age
also
: to contain an increasing percentage of older people
The town's population has grayed over the last two decades.
: to make gray
: the mks unit of absorbed dose of ionizing radiation equal to an energy of one joule per kilogram of irradiated material
—abbreviation Gy
Synonyms
Examples of gray in a Sentence
Adjective
What will you do when you are old and gray?
My friends have all gone gray.
It was a gray winter day.
the gray faces of the people in the crowd
Recent Examples on the WebRobb Report Studio, Robb Report, 30 Nov. 2023
Choose from three different colors: black, gray, and a mint green.
—Moriah Mason, Southern Living, 28 Nov. 2023
The Bernardo Modern Trench Coat that’s just $130 for Cyber Monday comes in two attractive neutral colors (a smoke gray and a tan), or to stand out a little more on those gray days, buy the J.Crew New Icon Trench that comes in a beautifully bright green and is only $173.
—Jamie Hergenrader, Travel + Leisure, 27 Nov. 2023
Sacai and Moncler, two high-fashion brands have come together to create an outerwear collection filled with high-quality Black and gray puffers and more.
—Kerane Marcellus, Essence, 27 Nov. 2023
On her eyes, Solomon leaned into the holiday vibes with a soft emerald and gray shadow combo and lots of black liner on both the upper and lower lashline, followed by Rare's Perfect Strokes Mascara.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 27 Nov. 2023
In the opening shot, she could be seen looking happily at the pink Christmas tree as Phoenix, in a gray knit turkey hat and matching gray onesie, laughed in her arms.
—Kimberlee Speakman, Peoplemag, 26 Nov. 2023
Look sharp, play sharp Mount Miguel dresses in four uniforms: black, white, red and gray.
—Don Norcross, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Nov. 2023
But in many places, under the gray sky, trees seemed mainly to demonstrate the complementarity of black and brown.
—Martin Weil, Washington Post, 25 Nov. 2023
Christina Holevas, Vogue, 28 Nov. 2023
With three neutral colorways (beige, charcoal gray, and light gray), the ottoman will blend seamlessly with any style.
—Gabriela Izquierdo, Southern Living, 7 Nov. 2023
The latter is thanks in part to herringbone highlights, an ingenious coloring concept that works with your grays rather than against them.
—Hannah Coates, Vogue, 20 Nov. 2023
Choose from 21 colors including dusty gray, indigo blue, olive green, and more.
—Rachel Simon, Travel + Leisure, 13 Nov. 2023
The lounging area towards the back of the store featured a large woven rug in a beige colorway with speckles of gray surrounded by mannequins wearing swimwear, artisanal fringe, and plissé sculptural dresses.
—Essence, 10 Nov. 2023
Someone absorbing four grays (equivalent to four joules of radiation energy per kilogram of body weight) would have a 50 percent chance of dying, but people sheltering in bigger buildings would receive smaller doses.
—Sébastien Philippe, Scientific American, 10 Nov. 2023
Patrick Dempsey's Hair in 2005 In the 2010s, the actor went shorter for a while, and started letting his pops of gray come through.
—Kate Hogan, Peoplemag, 8 Nov. 2023
At some point, the vehicle was painted dark gray but was returned to its original color during a partial restoration before receiving its Ferrari Classiche certification in 2014, according to the auction listing.
—Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 3 Nov. 2023
Emily Anthes, New York Times, 28 Nov. 2023
Nobody would have needed to be saddled with synthetic crow’s feet or frosted graying hair.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Oct. 2023
At sixty-three, Hand is lean and slight, with graying ginger stubble.
—Ruth Margalit, The New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2023
As the series opens, fans are introduced to Roderick Usher (Bruce Greenwood), the graying CEO of Fortunado Industries — a massive pharmaceutical conglomerate with a signature drug that’s equivalent to the highly addictive opioid OxyContin.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 11 Oct. 2023
This true-to-name style is available in six different washes, from light to gray, and is made from 100 percent organic cotton, which means that this pair is sustainable (total perk) but pretty stiff due to its non-stretch fabric.
—Alyssa Brascia, Peoplemag, 25 Sep. 2023
The sound studio, located amid a graying backdrop of warehouses on Massachusetts Avenue, is an unexpected island of creativity and hope.
—Melanie Stetson Freeman, The Christian Science Monitor, 14 Sep. 2023
Kate Middleton combined her sleeveless knitted piece with a minimalist outfit consisting of a white blouse and gray wide-leg pleated pants by Sézane.
—Katharina Fuchs, Vogue, 6 Oct. 2023
Penn first visited Ukraine in the fall of 2021, and the country’s optimism for their new leader had faded to gray.
—Stephen Rodrick, Variety, 13 Sep. 2023
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Adjective
The combination is picked up as a camouflage pattern on the matching green, black and gray strap, which gives it the overall feel of something that might be worn by a swarthy actor in a movie that involves trekking through the Amazon.
—Robb Report Studio, Robb Report, 30 Nov. 2023
Choose from three different colors: black, gray, and a mint green.
—Moriah Mason, Southern Living, 28 Nov. 2023
The Bernardo Modern Trench Coat that’s just $130 for Cyber Monday comes in two attractive neutral colors (a smoke gray and a tan), or to stand out a little more on those gray days, buy the J.Crew New Icon Trench that comes in a beautifully bright green and is only $173.
—Jamie Hergenrader, Travel + Leisure, 27 Nov. 2023
Sacai and Moncler, two high-fashion brands have come together to create an outerwear collection filled with high-quality Black and gray puffers and more.
—Kerane Marcellus, Essence, 27 Nov. 2023
On her eyes, Solomon leaned into the holiday vibes with a soft emerald and gray shadow combo and lots of black liner on both the upper and lower lashline, followed by Rare's Perfect Strokes Mascara.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 27 Nov. 2023
In the opening shot, she could be seen looking happily at the pink Christmas tree as Phoenix, in a gray knit turkey hat and matching gray onesie, laughed in her arms.
—Kimberlee Speakman, Peoplemag, 26 Nov. 2023
Look sharp, play sharp Mount Miguel dresses in four uniforms: black, white, red and gray.
—Don Norcross, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Nov. 2023
But in many places, under the gray sky, trees seemed mainly to demonstrate the complementarity of black and brown.
—Martin Weil, Washington Post, 25 Nov. 2023
Noun
Dressing in all gray is an elegant way to embrace the monochromatic trend.
—Christina Holevas, Vogue, 28 Nov. 2023
With three neutral colorways (beige, charcoal gray, and light gray), the ottoman will blend seamlessly with any style.
—Gabriela Izquierdo, Southern Living, 7 Nov. 2023
The latter is thanks in part to herringbone highlights, an ingenious coloring concept that works with your grays rather than against them.
—Hannah Coates, Vogue, 20 Nov. 2023
Choose from 21 colors including dusty gray, indigo blue, olive green, and more.
—Rachel Simon, Travel + Leisure, 13 Nov. 2023
The lounging area towards the back of the store featured a large woven rug in a beige colorway with speckles of gray surrounded by mannequins wearing swimwear, artisanal fringe, and plissé sculptural dresses.
—Essence, 10 Nov. 2023
Someone absorbing four grays (equivalent to four joules of radiation energy per kilogram of body weight) would have a 50 percent chance of dying, but people sheltering in bigger buildings would receive smaller doses.
—Sébastien Philippe, Scientific American, 10 Nov. 2023
Patrick Dempsey's Hair in 2005 In the 2010s, the actor went shorter for a while, and started letting his pops of gray come through.
—Kate Hogan, Peoplemag, 8 Nov. 2023
At some point, the vehicle was painted dark gray but was returned to its original color during a partial restoration before receiving its Ferrari Classiche certification in 2014, according to the auction listing.
—Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 3 Nov. 2023
Verb
But as the years progress, his joints will stiffen and his muzzle will gray.
—Emily Anthes, New York Times, 28 Nov. 2023
Nobody would have needed to be saddled with synthetic crow’s feet or frosted graying hair.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Oct. 2023
At sixty-three, Hand is lean and slight, with graying ginger stubble.
—Ruth Margalit, The New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2023
As the series opens, fans are introduced to Roderick Usher (Bruce Greenwood), the graying CEO of Fortunado Industries — a massive pharmaceutical conglomerate with a signature drug that’s equivalent to the highly addictive opioid OxyContin.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 11 Oct. 2023
This true-to-name style is available in six different washes, from light to gray, and is made from 100 percent organic cotton, which means that this pair is sustainable (total perk) but pretty stiff due to its non-stretch fabric.
—Alyssa Brascia, Peoplemag, 25 Sep. 2023
The sound studio, located amid a graying backdrop of warehouses on Massachusetts Avenue, is an unexpected island of creativity and hope.
—Melanie Stetson Freeman, The Christian Science Monitor, 14 Sep. 2023
Kate Middleton combined her sleeveless knitted piece with a minimalist outfit consisting of a white blouse and gray wide-leg pleated pants by Sézane.
—Katharina Fuchs, Vogue, 6 Oct. 2023
Penn first visited Ukraine in the fall of 2021, and the country’s optimism for their new leader had faded to gray.
—Stephen Rodrick, Variety, 13 Sep. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gray.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Adjective, Noun (1), and Verb
Middle English, from Old English grǣg; akin to Old High German grīs, grāo gray
Noun (2)
Louis H. Gray †1965 British radiobiologist
First Known Use
Adjective
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Noun (1)
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2
Verb
14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense
Noun (2)
1975, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of gray was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing gray
Articles Related to gray
Dictionary Entries Near gray
Cite this Entry
“Gray.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gray. Accessed 11 Dec. 2023.
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Kids Definition
gray
1 of 2 adjective
variants
also grey
ˈgrā
1
: of the color gray
also
: dull in color
2
: having gray hair
3
: lacking cheer or brightness : dismal
a gray day
grayness
noun
gray
2 of 2 noun
variants
also grey
1
: one of the series of neutral colors ranging between black and white
2
: something gray
gray
verb
grayish
adjective
ˈgrā-ish
Medical Definition
gray
1 of 2 noun
variants
or chiefly British grey
: any of a series of neutral colors ranging between black and white
gray
adjective
or chiefly British grey
gray
2 of 2 noun
: the mks unit of absorbed dose of ionizing radiation equal to an energy of one joule per kilogram of irradiated material
—abbreviation Gy
Biographical Definition
Gray
2 of 2biographical name (2)
Thomas 1716–1771 English poet
More from Merriam-Webster on gray
Nglish: Translation of gray for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of gray for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about gray
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