kernel

American  

[kur-nl] / ˈkɜr nl /

noun

1. the softer, usually edible part contained in the shell of a nut or the stone of a fruit.

2. the body of a seed within its husk or integuments.

3. a whole seed grain, as of wheat or corn.

4. South Atlantic States.  the pit or seed of a peach, cherry, plum, etc.

5. the central or most important part of anything; essence; gist; core.

   His leadership is the kernel of the organization.

6. Mathematics.  the set of elements that a given function from one set to a second set maps into the identity of the second set.

7. Also called rumpf.  Physical Chemistry.  the remainder of an atom after the valence electrons have been removed.

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verb (used with object)

kerneled, kerneling kernelled, kernelling

1. to enclose as a kernel.

kernel British  

/ ˈkɜːnəl /

noun

1. the edible central part of a seed, nut, or fruit within the shell or stone

2. the grain of a cereal, esp wheat, consisting of the seed in a hard husk

3. the central or essential part of something

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verb

1. rare  (intr) to form kernels

kernel Scientific  

/ kûr′nəl /

1. A grain or seed, as of a cereal grass, enclosed in a husk.

2. The inner, usually edible seed of a nut or fruit stone.

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Other Word Forms

• kernel-less adjective
• kernelless adjective
• kernelly adjective

Etymology

Origin of kernel

before 1000; Middle English kirnel, Old English cyrnel, diminutive of corn seed, corn ¹

Example Sentences

But first they have to get past a Cornhusker team missing its biggest kernel.

From Los Angeles Times

She is merely a spectator, thinking kernels of thoughts that will be dashed into the mind’s chasm as her brain grows and develops.

From Salon

A central kernel of the premise of “After the Hunt” is that you never know what someone is going through.

From Los Angeles Times

If plant breeders can learn to trigger or replicate this activation of WUS-D1, it may be possible to create new wheat varieties that produce more kernels per plant.

From Science Daily

Too many people conclude that being a paying customer liberates them to be crude and lob the F-bomb like popcorn kernels.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• fruit
• grain
• meat
• morsel
• nut