cereal

American  

[seer-ee-uhl] / ˈsɪər i əl /

noun

1. any plant of the grass family yielding an edible grain, as wheat, rye, oats, rice, or corn.

2. the grain itself.

3. some edible preparation of it, especially a breakfast food.

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adjective

1. of or relating to grain or the plants producing it.

cereal British  

/ ˈsɪərɪəl /

noun

1. any grass that produces an edible grain, such as oat, rye, wheat, rice, maize, sorghum, and millet

2. the grain produced by such a plant

3. any food made from this grain, esp breakfast food

4. (modifier) of or relating to any of these plants or their products

   cereal farming

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cereal Scientific  

/ sîr′ē-əl /

1. A grass, such as corn, rice, sorghum, or wheat, whose starchy grains are used as food. Cereals are annual plants, and cereal crops must be reseeded for each growing season. Cereal grasses were domesticated during the Neolithic Period and formed the basis of early agriculture.

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Other Word Forms

• noncereal adjective

Etymology

Origin of cereal

1590–1600; < Latin Cereālis of, pertaining to Ceres; -al ¹

Example Sentences

The design on the shirt features the bunny from Trix cereal spray-painting the band name on the side of a church.

From Literature

Sometimes I’ll make them an egg and bacon sandwich and sometimes it’s just cereal.

From The Wall Street Journal

According to the charity, each bag of food includes fresh fruit and vegetables, chilled items for the fridge, and cupboard supplies such as pasta and cereal.

From BBC

I remember the lights went off one time when we were eating cereal.

From Los Angeles Times

Ultra-processed foods include a wide range of packaged and convenience items such as chips, crackers, frozen meals, processed meats, sugary drinks, breakfast cereals and breads.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• bran
• corn
• grain
• rice
• wheat