Meaning & use
rod
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Meanings
nouncountable
A thin straight bar or stick, usually of metal or wood.
Grammar: Often with a material or use: an iron rod, a curtain rod.
Patterns
- a rod of something
- a rod for something
He hung the curtains on a brass rod.
The builder tied steel rods inside the concrete.
The old tent was held up by a wooden rod.
nouncountable
A long thin pole with a line and reel, used for catching fish.
Grammar: Short for fishing rod.
Patterns
- cast a rod
- a fishing rod
She cast the rod into the river and waited.
He bought a new fishing rod for his birthday.
The boy carried his rod down to the pond.
nouncountableold-fashionedtechnical
An old unit of length equal to about five meters, used in surveying and land records.
Grammar: Historical unit: a rod is 5.5 yards.
Patterns
- a rod of something
The deed described a field forty rods long.
Surveyors once measured roads in rods and chains.
The lot is ten rods wide by twenty rods deep.
nouncountablebiologyspecialist
A cell in the eye that detects dim light.
Grammar: Biology term, often in rods and cones.
Patterns
- rods and cones
Rods help us see in dim light.
The retina holds millions of rods and cones.
Night vision depends mostly on the rods.
Word forms
| plural | rods |
|---|
Common combinations
- a fishing rod
- He packed a fishing rod for the lake.
- a curtain rod
- The curtain rod fell off the wall.
- a steel rod
- Steel rods strengthen the concrete.
- a lightning rod
- A lightning rod protects the roof.
- rods and cones
- The eye has two kinds of cells, rods and cones.
- a rod of iron
- The gate was held by a rod of iron.
Synonyms and how they differ
- stick
- Stick is a loose word for a thin piece of wood, whereas rod is straighter and often made of metal.
- bar
- Bar is usually thicker and heavier than a rod, and can be flat.
- pole
- Pole is longer and usually thicker, such as a flagpole or telegraph pole.
- staff
- Staff is a long stick used for walking or as a symbol of office.
Word family
- rod-shaped adjective
- long and thin like a rod
- rodlike adjective
- looking like a rod
- ramrod noun
- a rod used to push charge down a gun barrel
- lightning rod noun
- a metal rod that conducts lightning to the ground
Commonly confused: rod or rode? rod or road?
rod vs rode
Rode is the past tense of ride and sounds the same as rod in some accents, but it is a verb.
rod vs road
Road is a path for traffic; rod is a stick.
Practice
He cast his ___ into the lake and waited for a bite.
Choose one answer.
A fishing rod is the pole used to catch fish. Rode and road sound similar but are a verb and a path respectively.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “rod”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.