grain

noun grains

1. uncountable The harvested seeds of various grass food crops, especially wheat, maize, rye, barley, and rice. Near-synonym: corn (broad sense, maize and others)

   Similar: cereal, corn

2. uncountable Similar seeds from any food crop, e.g., buckwheat, amaranth, quinoa. Near-synonym: corn (broad sense, maize and others)

   Similar: corn

3. countable A single seed of a food crop, especially a cereal grass crop. a grain of wheat

   Similar: corn

4. countable, uncountable The crops from which grain is harvested. The fields were planted with grain.
5. uncountable A linear texture of a material or surface. Cut along the grain of the wood.
6. countable A single particle of a substance. a grain of sand
7. countable, uncountable The English grain of ¹⁄₅₇₆₀ troy pound or ¹⁄₇₀₀₀ pound avoirdupois, now exactly 64.79891 mg.

   Similar: troy grain

8. countable, uncountable The metric, carat, or pearl grain of ¹⁄₄ carat used for measuring precious stones and pearls, now exactly 50 mg.
9. countable, historical, uncountable The French grain of ¹⁄₉₂₁₆ livre, equivalent to 53.11 mg at metricization and equal to exactly 54.25 mg from 1812–1839 as part of the mesures usuelles.
10. countable, historical Any of various small units of length originally notionally based on a grain's width, variously standardized at different places and times.
11. countable, historical The carat grain of ¹⁄₄ carat as a measure of gold purity, creating a 96-point scale between 0% and 100% purity.
12. countable, uncountable A region within a material having a single crystal structure or direction.
13. countable, uncountable The solid piece of fuel in an individual solid-fuel rocket engine.
14. countable, uncountable 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. all in a robe of darkest grain
15. countable, uncountable The hair side of a piece of leather, or the marking on that side. The grain of the leather is also sometimes damaged by the filling , by the taking off the hair , and by the river work.
16. countable, in plural, uncountable The remains of grain, etc., after brewing or distillation; hence, any residuum.

    Similar: draff

17. countable, uncountable A rounded prominence on the back of a sepal, as in the common dock.
18. countable, uncountable Temper; natural disposition; inclination. brothers […] not united in grain
19. countable, uncountable Visual texture in processed photographic film due to the presence of small particles of a metallic silver, or dye clouds, developed from silver halide that have received enough photons.
20. countable, uncountable A tiny fragment of a digital audio recording, used in granular synthesis to create new sounds or textures.

Similar: grain

verb grains · graining · grained

1. transitive To feed grain to. He said that no man loved his horses, unless his own hands grained them. Every Christmas he gave them brimming measures.
2. transitive To make granular; to form into grains.
3. intransitive To form grains, or to assume a granular form, as the result of crystallization; to granulate.
4. To texture a surface in imitation of the grain of a substance such as wood.
5. To remove the hair or fat from a skin.
6. To soften leather.
7. To yield fruit.

noun grains · grane

1. A branch of a tree; a stalk or stem of a plant; an offshoot.
2. One of the branches of a valley or river.
3. An iron fish spear or harpoon, with a number of points half-barbed inwardly. Served 5 lb of fish per man which was caught by striking with grains
4. A blade of a sword, knife, etc.
5. An arm of a cross.
6. A thin piece of metal, used in a mould to steady a core.
7. dialectal A branch or arm of a stream, inlet, or sea.
8. dialectal A fork in a river valley or ravine.
9. dialectal The branch of a family; clan.
10. dialectal The groin; crotch.
11. dialectal The fangs of a tooth.

Similar: grain

proper noun

1. A village in Isle of Grain parish, Isle of Grain, Medway borough, Kent, England (OS grid ref TQ8876).
2. A surname.