Meaning & use
grain
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Meanings
nouncountable
A small hard seed of a cereal plant such as wheat, rice or corn.
Grammar: Counts single seeds: a grain of rice, three grains of wheat.
Patterns
- a grain of something
She found a single grain of rice stuck to the bottom of the bag.
The farmer stored the grain in a dry barn.
Each grain of wheat is ground into flour at the mill.
noununcountable
Cereal crops as a whole, or their harvested seeds, grown for food and feed.
Grammar: Used without an article for the crop in general: grain prices rose.
Patterns
- grain harvest
- grain exports
The country exports grain to several neighbors.
Prices for grain fell after the strong harvest.
Cattle were fed grain during the winter.
nouncountable
A tiny hard particle of something such as sand, salt or sugar.
Grammar: Usually followed by of: a grain of salt.
Patterns
- a grain of something
A grain of sand got into my shoe.
Add just a few grains of salt to the sauce.
The photographer could see every grain of dust on the lens.
nounsingular
The direction and pattern of fibers in wood, stone or other material, or the rough texture of a surface.
Grammar: Usually used with the: with the grain, against the grain.
Patterns
- with the grain
- against the grain
- across the grain
Sand the table along the grain to avoid scratches.
The oak had a beautiful, tight grain.
The photo has a coarse grain that gives it an old-fashioned look.
nounsingularfigurative
A very small amount of a quality, especially truth or sense.
Grammar: Almost always in a negative or limited phrase: not a grain of truth.
Patterns
- a grain of truth
- a grain of sense
There was not a grain of truth in the rumor.
He has a grain of common sense, at least.
Every story has a grain of fact behind it.
Word forms
| plural | grains |
|---|
Common combinations
- whole grain
- This bread is made from whole grain flour.
- against the grain
- Working on weekends goes against the grain for her.
- grain of salt
- Take his predictions with a grain of salt.
- grain of truth
- There may be a grain of truth in what she said.
- grain harvest
- Heavy rain damaged this year's grain harvest.
- cut along the grain
- Cut along the grain of the wood to keep it from splitting.
Synonyms and how they differ
- seed
- Seed is the part of a plant from which a new plant grows, while grain is specifically the edible seed of cereal crops.
- speck
- Speck is any tiny spot or particle, whereas grain suggests a small hard piece like sand or salt.
- cereal
- Cereal names the plant or food product, while grain is the seed itself.
- texture
- Texture describes how a surface feels overall, but grain points to a visible pattern or direction in the material.
Word family
Commonly confused: grain or groan?
grain vs groan
Groan is a low sound of pain or annoyance, and it is spelled differently from grain even though some learners mix them up in writing.
Practice
Which sentence uses grain in the sense of a wood pattern?
Choose one answer.
Only 'along the grain' refers to the direction of fibers in wood. The other sentences use grain for a crop, a tiny amount of truth and a particle of sand.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “grain”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.