gruel

noun

gru·el | \ˈgrü-əl

Definition of gruel

1 : a thin porridge

2 [ from to get one's gruel to accept punishment ] chiefly British : punishment

3 : something that lacks substance or significance the argument was thin gruel

Examples of gruel in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This assumption was buoyed by various historical accounts, indicating that in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, natives dried and ground up cacao seeds to make gruels and beverages. — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, "Chocolate has an even earlier origin than we thought, new study finds," 29 Oct. 2018 Salad and leftover gruel from the day before had been laid out. — Washington Post, "Aid freeze, politics push Gaza’s people deeper into poverty," 9 June 2018 Other recipes included: onion gruel, Economical Meat Pie, egg daisies, and frozen Macedonia. — Devra First, BostonGlobe.com, "Why the club sandwich may just be the perfect American food," 11 June 2018 Polenta’s humble origins lay in basic, savory gruel for the poorer classes. — David Tanis, New York Times, "Polenta and Shrimp, a Marriage of Land and Sea," 2 Mar. 2018 Salad and leftover gruel from the day before had been laid out. — Washington Post, "Aid freeze, politics push Gaza’s people deeper into poverty," 9 June 2018 Some subsist on the thin gruel of political cartoon shows and online impeachment petitions. — Sam Dolnick, miamiherald, "After Trump won, this man vowed to become ignorant. He’s been shockingly successful | Miami Herald," 11 Mar. 2018 During Ramadan, Samia Hassan often walks five kilometers (three miles) to another Gaza City neighborhood to line up for wheat gruel cooked in a large cauldron over an open fire. — Washington Post, "Aid freeze, politics push Gaza’s people deeper into poverty," 9 June 2018 During Ramadan, Samia Hassan often walks three miles to another Gaza neighborhood to line up for wheat gruel cooked in a large cauldron over an open fire. — The Christian Science Monitor, "Amid growing poverty in Gaza, aid trickles in," 8 June 2018

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