especially technical and British, maize. 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.
the grain, seeds, or kernels of this plant, used for human food or for fodder.
the ears of this plant.
the edible seed of certain other cereal plants, especially wheat in England and oats in Scotland.
the plants themselves.
Skiing. corn snow.
Informal. old-fashioned, trite, or mawkishly sentimental material, as a joke, a story, or music.
to preserve and season with salt in grains.
to preserve and season with brine.
to granulate, as gunpowder.
to plant (land) with corn.
to feed with corn.
Cornish.
Cornwall.
any of various cereal plants, esp the predominant crop of a region, such as wheat in England and oats in Scotland and Ireland
the seeds of such plants, esp after harvesting
a single seed of such plants; a grain
British equivalent: maize. Also called: Indian corn.
a tall annual grass, Zea mays, cultivated for its yellow edible grains, which develop on a spike
the grain of this plant, used for food, fodder, and as a source of oil See also sweet corn popcorn
the plants producing these kinds of grain considered as a growing crop
spring corn
( in combination )
a cornfield
short for corn whisky
slang an idea, song, etc, regarded as banal or sentimental
archaic any hard particle or grain
to feed (animals) with corn, esp oats
to preserve in brine
to salt
to plant corn on
a hardening or thickening of the skin around a central point in the foot, caused by pressure or friction
informal to offend or hurt someone by touching on a sensitive subject or encroaching on his privileges
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
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); see origin at cornu
Representing Latin -cornis horned
Corn is a plant that grows long ears of kernels on tall, grass-like stalks. Many large farms grow fields of corn each year, for human or animals to eat, or to make corn-based products. Corn is an important crop in North America, since many animals raised for meat eat corn, not to mention the corn that people consume. In addition, products like high fructose corn syrup and ethanol fuel are made from corn. Many people also love to eat corn on the cob slathered with butter in the summer time. In many parts of the world, it's called maize instead of corn, which is an Old English word meaning "grain."
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Pair it with colorful summer sides like corn and avocado salad, broccoli slaw or cucumber kimchi, and it will feel nothing like Thanksgiving 2.0.
From Salon ● Jul. 12, 2026
In practice, corn chips are generally considered to be UPFs regardless of how much they are actually processed.
From Slate ● Jul. 12, 2026
Smithfield was established as a market in 1848 on the site of the old trading place for corn and hide.
From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026
One such chemical is sulfoxaflor, a next generation pesticide introduced in 2013 to eliminate sap feeding insects such as aphids on crops including soybeans and corn.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 10, 2026
Then he bought a turning plow, some seed corn, and a milk cow.
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
The result is the $31,000,000 American Rediscount Corn., which was to start business in Manhattan last week, after the method of the Federal Reserve banks.
From Time Magazine Archive
Some 1929 farm facts: Corn. "2,528,000,000 bushels produced, 308,000,000 less than in 1928 . . . smaller acreage . . . reduced yields."
From Time Magazine Archive
These Ears of Corn. gathered and rubbed in my hands upon broken Sabbaths, I offer first to my Wife, and then to my other Friends.
From Unspoken Sermons Series I., II., and II. by MacDonald, George
Talk like the vulgar sort of market men That come to gather money for their Corn. 1st Henry VI, act iii, sc.
From The plant-lore & garden-craft of Shakespeare by Ellacombe, Henry Nicholson
Similarly in loan-words, Ir. c�ir, fial, W. cwyr, O. Corn. guil, from Lat. cēra, vēlum.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 5 "Cat" to "Celt" by Various
And that is how a quack who treats the tender corns on pedicured toes suddenly becomes a world-renowned corn doctor in a show that seemingly never met a pun it didn’t like.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2025
The emperor wore his hat with the corns parallel to shoulders - known as "en bataille" - whereas most of his officers wore their hats perpendicular to the shoulders.
From BBC ● Nov. 18, 2023
Calluses are usually painless, while corns tend to be painful or tender — and are sometimes accompanied by a fluid-filled sac underneath.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 18, 2022
The pills often cause his joints to become stiff and prompt the development of corns, a type of callus made of dead skin - which a doctor in Bismarck freezes off.
From Washington Times ● Feb. 29, 2020
I’m going to find a feed store and I’m going to walk to it and buy dry corns.
From "Girls Like Us" by Gail Giles
Danny's Jimmy Nardellos and harissa relish with labneh and mint sounded amazing, and I got a kick out of the notion of going from a Chateaubriand to bologna and canned corned beef.
From Salon ● May 29, 2024
It is a far cry from the infamous tour to India in 1993, when the England squad survived on tinned corned beef and naan bread.
From BBC ● Jan. 28, 2024
Capitol Hill Blog reports that in addition to delicate pastries, the new location will include hearty savory fare like Reuben sandwiches and corned beef hash.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 25, 2023
“We would do corned beef tacos over there,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 18, 2023
“There’s corned beef so you can make sandwiches for lunch,” Aunty Uju had said, as though those words were perfectly normal and did not require a humorous preamble about how Americans ate bread for lunch.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Corned beef, on the other hand, is salt cured — hence the corning process.
From Salon ● Apr. 12, 2022
Hybrid striped bass are fair with spinners, and highly shaky rattle traps corning bait in shallow water.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 21, 2020
You need only start by corning your own beef.
From New York Times ● Mar. 6, 2017
Winner Obote is a fervent anti-Communist whose major task in corning months will be in London, where constitutional talks are scheduled this summer.
From Time Magazine Archive
She could feel the power of the great creature corning off him like waves of heat “I must work till sunset,” he said.
From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
