grout

American  

[grout] / graʊt /

noun

1. a thin, coarse mortar poured into various narrow cavities, as masonry joints or rock fissures, to fill them and consolidate the adjoining objects into a solid mass.

2. a coat of plaster for finishing a ceiling or interior wall.

3. Usually grouts. lees; grounds.

4. Archaic.

   1. coarse meal or porridge.

   2. grouts, groats.

---

verb (used with object)

1. to fill or consolidate with grout.

2. to use as grout.

grout British  

/ ɡraʊt /

noun

1. a thin mortar for filling joints between tiles, masonry, etc

2. a fine plaster used as a finishing coat

3. coarse meal or porridge

---

verb

1. (tr) to fill (joints) or finish (walls, etc) with grout

Other Word Forms

• grouter
  noun
• ungrouted
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of grout

before 1150; Middle English; Old English grūt; see grits, groats, grit

Explanation

Grout is a paste or putty that you use to fill in the spaces between tiles or along the edge of a tub. When grout dries, it keeps tiles in place, and once it's sealed, it protects against moisture. An old-fashioned meaning of grout is "porridge or gruel," from the Old English gruta, "coarse meal," and a root meaning "to grind." These days you don't eat grout, but instead use it in home improvement projects, especially between floor or wall tiles. As a verb, to grout means "to apply grout."

Example Sentences

Because Xu is a foreign national, Judge Grout told him he was "liable in principle" to be returned to his "country of origin, which is China".

From BBC • Nov. 14, 2025

Grout or concrete will then be injected between the jacket and column.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 22, 2023

Grout pads are concrete slabs that anchor the track.

From Washington Post • Feb. 24, 2023

Grout has improved a lot since the 1970s.

From Slate • Jan. 9, 2023

Changes at the Cotulla office show how much harder it has become to sneak past agents like Grout and Sauceda.

From "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario

Related Words

• adhesive
• mud
• plaster
• sand