Grain
[greɪn] or [ɡren]
Definition
(noun.) the direction, texture, or pattern of fibers found in wood or leather or stone or in a woven fabric; 'saw the board across the grain'.
(noun.) the smallest possible unit of anything; 'there was a grain of truth in what he said'; 'he does not have a grain of sense'.
(noun.) foodstuff prepared from the starchy grains of cereal grasses.
(noun.) a relatively small granular particle of a substance; 'a grain of sand'; 'a grain of sugar'.
(noun.) a cereal grass; 'wheat is a grain that is grown in Kansas'.
(noun.) dry seed-like fruit produced by the cereal grasses: e.g. wheat, barley, Indian corn.
(noun.) 1/7000 pound; equals a troy grain or 64.799 milligrams.
(noun.) 1/60 dram; equals an avoirdupois grain or 64.799 milligrams.
(noun.) a weight unit used for pearls or diamonds: 50 mg or 1/4 carat.
(noun.) the side of leather from which the hair has been removed.
(verb.) paint (a surface) to make it look like stone or wood.
Editor: Winthrop--From WordNet
Definition
(v. & n.) See Groan.
(n.) A single small hard seed; a kernel, especially of those plants, like wheat, whose seeds are used for food.
(n.) The fruit of certain grasses which furnish the chief food of man, as corn, wheat, rye, oats, etc., or the plants themselves; -- used collectively.
(n.) Any small, hard particle, as of sand, sugar, salt, etc.; hence, any minute portion or particle; as, a grain of gunpowder, of pollen, of starch, of sense, of wit, etc.
(n.) The unit of the English system of weights; -- so called because considered equal to the average of grains taken from the middle of the ears of wheat. 7,000 grains constitute the pound avoirdupois, and 5,760 grains the pound troy. A grain is equal to .0648 gram. See Gram.
(n.) A reddish dye made from the coccus insect, or kermes; hence, a red color of any tint or hue, as crimson, scarlet, etc.; sometimes used by the poets as equivalent to Tyrian purple.
(n.) The composite particles of any substance; that arrangement of the particles of any body which determines its comparative roughness or hardness; texture; as, marble, sugar, sandstone, etc., of fine grain.
(n.) The direction, arrangement, or appearance of the fibers in wood, or of the strata in stone, slate, etc.
(n.) The fiber which forms the substance of wood or of any fibrous material.
(n.) The hair side of a piece of leather, or the marking on that side.
(n.) The remains of grain, etc., after brewing or distillation; hence, any residuum. Also called draff.
(n.) A rounded prominence on the back of a sepal, as in the common dock. See Grained, a., 4.
(a.) Temper; natural disposition; inclination.
(a.) A sort of spice, the grain of paradise.
(v. t.) To paint in imitation of the grain of wood, marble, etc.
(v. t.) To form (powder, sugar, etc.) into grains.
(v. t.) To take the hair off (skins); to soften and raise the grain of (leather, etc.).
(n.) To yield fruit.
(n.) To form grains, or to assume a granular ferm, as the result of crystallization; to granulate.
(n.) A branch of a tree; a stalk or stem of a plant.
(n.) A tine, prong, or fork.
(n.) One the branches of a valley or of a river.
(n.) An iron first speak or harpoon, having four or more barbed points.
(n.) A blade of a sword, knife, etc.
(n.) A thin piece of metal, used in a mold to steady a core.
Checked by Helena
Synonyms and Synonymous
n. [1]. Seed, kernel, matured ovule.[2]. Corn (wheat, rye, oats, barley, maize, &c.).[3]. Particle, atom, bit, scrap, jot, whit, mite, ace, iota, tittle, scintilla, trace, spark, shadow, glimmer.[4]. Twentieth part of a scruple, twenty-fourth part of a pennyweight.[5]. Fibre, texture.[6]. Temper, disposition, humor.[7]. Dye, tint, color, stain, tinge, hue, shade, tincture.
Typist: Moira
Definition
n. a prong fork: a kind of harpoon.
n. a single small hard seed: (coll.) the seeds of certain plants which form the chief food of man: corn in general: a minute particle: a very small quantity: the smallest British weight supposed to be the average weight of a seed or well-ripened ear of corn: the arrangement of the particles or fibres of anything as stone or wood: texture as of leather: the crimson dye made from cochineal insects which in the prepared state resemble grains of seed—hence to dye in grain is to dye deeply also to dye in the wool: innate quality or character of anything.—v.t. to form into grains cause to granulate: to paint in imitation of wood marble &c.: in tanning to take the hair off.—n. Grain′age duties on grain.—adj. Grained rough: furrowed.—ns. Grain′er one who paints in imitation of the grain of wood; Grain′ing painting so as to imitate the grain of wood: a process in tanning in which the grain of the leather is raised.—adj. Grain′y having grains or kernels.—Grains of Paradise an aromatic and pungent seed imported from Guinea.—Against the grain against the fibre of the wood—hence against the natural temper or inclination; With a grain of salt with reservation as of a story that cannot be admitted (L. cum grano salis).
Checked by Delores
Unserious Contents or Definition
Grain is a most fortunate dream, betokening wealth and happiness. For a young woman, it is a dream of fortune. She will meet wealthy and adoring companions.
Checked by Calvin
Examples
- In agriculture the raising of grain has extended in the Nineteenth Century to enormous proportions. Edward W. Byrn. The Progress of Invention in the Nineteenth Century.
- On a meat dietary men can live without salt, but grain-consuming people need it just as herbivorous animals need it. H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
- In a recent and more restricted sense, it is applied to a machine that cuts grain, separates it into gavels, and binds it. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- Not a grain, said Tom. Harriet Beecher Stowe. Uncle Tom's Cabin.
- But this one living grain in him matched the perfect youth in her. D. H. Lawrence. Women in Love .
- Italy claims the honour among European nations of first introducing a machine for sowing grain. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- On another occasion he encountered a more novel peril by falling into the pile of wheat in a grain elevator and being almost smothered. Frank Lewis Dyer. Edison, His Life and Inventions.
- Somewhat as a house is composed of a group of bricks, or a sand heap of grains of sand, the human body is composed of small divisions called cells. Bertha M. Clark. General Science.
- As you say, there appear to be grains of sawdust in it. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Return of Sherlock Holmes.
- The wind blows about the sands of the desert; the position of the grains is changed. John Dewey. Democracy and Education.
- When dry, dip the paper into a solution of iodide of potassium, containing 500 grains dissolved in 1 pint of water, and let it remain in the solution two or three minutes. Frederick C. Bakewell. Great Facts.
- They cultivated n umerous vegetables, grains, fruits, and flowers. Walter Libby. An Introduction to the History of Science.
- In alluvial deposits it is extracted by washing, in dust grains, lamin? or nuggets. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- When it is desired to color the lips add 20 grains of carmine. William K. David. Secrets of Wise Men, Chemists and Great Physicians.
- The whitening is done by boiling the pins in a large copper kettle, which also contains layers of grained tin and a solution of argol or bitartrate of potash. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- When thoroughly dry it is grained with a toothed instrument on the flesh side and bruised on the grain or hair side for the purpose of softening the leather. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- Her cross-grained pet greyhound was in the room, and I fully expected a barking and snapping reception. Wilkie Collins. The Woman in White.
- Though a hard-grained man, close, dry, and silent, he can enjoy old wine with the best. Charles Dickens. Bleak House.
- As he opened the door the cross-grained greyhound poked out her sharp muzzle from under the sofa, and barked and snapped at him. Wilkie Collins. The Woman in White.
- The wood of apple trees is hard, close-grained and often richly colored, and is suitable for turning or cabinet work. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- A further process of paring and graining makes it ready for waxing or coloring, in which oil and lampblack are used on the flesh side. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
Edited by Antony