corn

¹

[ kawrn ]

noun

1. Also called Indian corn;. a tall cereal plant, Zea mays, cultivated in many varieties, having a jointed, solid stem and bearing the grain, seeds, or kernels on large ears.
2. the grain, seeds, or kernels of this plant, used for human food or for fodder.
3. the ears of this plant.
4. the edible seed of certain other cereal plants, especially wheat in England and oats in Scotland.
5. the plants themselves.
6. sweet corn.
7. corn whiskey.
8. Skiing. corn snow ( def ).
9. Informal. old-fashioned, trite, or mawkishly sentimental material, as a joke, a story, or music.

verb (used with object)

1. to preserve and season with salt in grains.
2. to preserve and season with brine.
3. to granulate, as gunpowder.
4. to plant (land) with corn.
5. to feed with corn.

corn

²

[ kawrn ]

noun

, Pathology.

1. a horny induration or callosity of the epidermis, usually with a central core, formed especially on the toes or feet and caused by undue pressure or friction.

-corn

³

1. a combining form meaning “having a horn,” of the kind specified by the initial element:

   longicorn.

Corn.

⁴

abbreviation for

1. Cornish.
2. Cornwall.

corn

¹

/ kɔːn /

noun

1. 1. any of various cereal plants, esp the predominant crop of a region, such as wheat in England and oats in Scotland and Ireland
   2. the seeds of such plants, esp after harvesting
   3. a single seed of such plants; a grain
2. Also calledIndian corn British equivalentmaize
   1. a tall annual grass, Zea mays, cultivated for its yellow edible grains, which develop on a spike
   2. the grain of this plant, used for food, fodder, and as a source of oil See also sweet corn popcorn
3. 1. the plants producing these kinds of grain considered as a growing crop

      spring corn

   2. ( in combination )

      a cornfield

4. See corn whisky
   short for corn whisky
5. slang.
   an idea, song, etc, regarded as banal or sentimental
6. archaic.
   any hard particle or grain

verb

1. to feed (animals) with corn, esp oats
2. 1. to preserve in brine
   2. to salt
3. to plant corn on

corn

²

/ kɔːn /

noun

1. a hardening or thickening of the skin around a central point in the foot, caused by pressure or friction
2. tread on someone's corns informal.
   tread on someone's corns to offend or hurt someone by touching on a sensitive subject or encroaching on his privileges

Word History and Origins

Origin of corn¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English; cognate with Dutch koren, Old Norse korn, German Korn, Gothic kaúrn; akin to Russian zernó, Latin grānum grain

Origin of corn²

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English corn(e), from Anglo-French, Old French, from Latin cornū horn (hence a horny hardening of the cuticle); cornu

Origin of corn³

Representing Latin -cornis horned

Word History and Origins

Origin of corn¹

Old English corn; related to Old Norse, Old High German corn, Gothic kaúrn, Latin grānum, Sanskrit jīrná fragile

Origin of corn²

C15: from Old French corne horn, from Latin cornū

Example Sentences

Despite plentiful rice, corn and wheat, China remains dependent on imported soybeans and is facing a pork shortage.

From Ozy

But, now, with August wrapping up, my mind swirls again to thoughts about how an ear of corn in my home could also help me savor summer for just a while longer.

From Eater

Do not underestimate this seat in the shape of a corn-on-the-cob by Third Drawer Down, an Australian home goods company.

From Eater

The corn is then washed and peeled, and left to dry for 12 hours before it’s ground with stones made from volcanic rock.

From Eater

You’ve got surplus corn and you’ve got a demand for easy, convenient sweetener in the food sector.

From Freakonomics

For the uninitiated, the film is set on a future Earth whose crops (save corn) have been wiped out by a mysterious blight.

From The Daily Beast

I certainly found it very helpful when I realized we were going to have to grow our own corn.

From The Daily Beast

That must have been some corn for her to remember it 50 years later!

From The Daily Beast

Hilbert was a flashy man who helicoptered five miles daily over corn fields to and from the office.

From The Daily Beast

He is perfectly capable of introducing a bill requiring all cars to run on corn stalks instead of gasoline.

From The Daily Beast

The man with the automobile, the corn-cure, and the baby grew to be legendary in the villages of Provence.

From Project Gutenberg

I should judge that a peck of corn is about the average product of a day's work through all this region.

From Project Gutenberg

The Vine appears at intervals, but is not general through this region: Indian Corn is also rare, and appears in small patches.

From Project Gutenberg

Then, kindly and gently, the boy took Squinty over to the place where the corn crib was built on to the barn.

From Project Gutenberg

If he has made up his mind that I'm stealing corn nothing I could say would change his opinion.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• abscess
• blister
• bruise
• bump
• contusion
• inflammation
• injury
• nodule
• sore
• tumor
• welt