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• barleycorn
  barleycorn

  noun

  barley.
• Barleycorn
  Barleycorn

  noun

  John. John Barleycorn.

barleycorn

¹ American  

[bahr-lee-kawrn] / ˈbɑr liˌkɔrn /

noun

1. barley.

2. a grain of barley.

3. a unit of length equal to 1/3 inch (8.5 millimeters).

4. Also barley corn a type of basket weave that produces an allover geometric pattern.

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Barleycorn ² American  

[bahr-lee-kawrn] / ˈbɑr liˌkɔrn /

noun

1. John. John Barleycorn.

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barleycorn British  

/ ˈbɑːlɪˌkɔːn /

noun

1. a grain of barley, or barley itself

2. an obsolete unit of length equal to one third of an inch

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Etymology

Origin of barleycorn

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English; see origin at barley ¹, corn ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

barleycorn Barleycorn

They had cheese and milk from the goats that shared the caves with the singers, even some oats and barleycorn and dried fruit laid by during the long summer.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

“That should buy you a bushel o’ barleycorn.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

"When you speak in that tone you make me wish myself a barleycorn," says Tedcastle, smiling.

From Molly Bawn by Hamilton, Margaret Wolfe

"Here is a barleycorn of a different kind to those which grow in the farmer's fields, and which the chickens eat; put it into a flower-pot, and see what will happen."

From Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen by Andersen, H. C. (Hans Christian)

I mentioned the Abbot Molanus, who conversed most rationally upon every subject, but would not leave his room because he thought he was a barleycorn, and the hens would swallow him.

From The Serapion Brethren, Vol. I. by Hoffmann, Ernst Theodor Wilhelm

I started reading it and on page one the characters are all singing "Barleycorn" by Johnny Flynn.

From Salon ● Jun. 3, 2022

The New York Times took a cheekier approach with its front page headline: “John Barleycorn Died Peacefully at the Toll of 12.”

From New York Times ● Jan. 1, 2020

Chicago bars using facial detection software Need to know how crowded John Barleycorn is right now?

From Chicago Tribune ● Nov. 16, 2011

John Barleycorn, meanwhile, is tortured, killed and resuscitated, but in this parable of the agricultural cycle, it seems to me he is something of a straw man.

From The Guardian ● Apr. 8, 2010

The woman rode double with Rory, her son with Tom Barleycorn, the old men with Horse and Satin.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin