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  • bran
    bran
    noun
    the partly ground husk of wheat or other grain, separated from flour meal by sifting.
  • Bran
    Bran
    noun
    a king of Britain and the brother of Manawydan and Branwen: his head was buried at London as a magical defense against invasion. He was sometimes regarded as a sea god or Christian saint.
Synonyms

bran

1 American  
[bran] / bræn /

noun

  1. the partly ground husk of wheat or other grain, separated from flour meal by sifting.


verb (used with object)

branned, branning
  1. to soak or boil in bran water, as in the tanning of hides.

Bran 2 American  
[bran] / bræn /

noun

  1. Welsh Legend. a king of Britain and the brother of Manawydan and Branwen: his head was buried at London as a magical defense against invasion. He was sometimes regarded as a sea god or Christian saint.

  2. a male given name, form of Brandon.


bran British  
/ bræn /

noun

  1. husks of cereal grain separated from the flour by sifting

  2. food prepared from these husks

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of bran

1250–1300; Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French bran, bren, of uncertain origin

Explanation

The outside layer of a grain like wheat or rice is called bran. If you need some fiber, avoid the chocolate chip muffin and opt for the bran muffin instead. Most of wheat's nutrients are in its bran and germ, which are parts of an unprocessed cereal grain. When wheat is processed into white flour, the bran is removed. That's too bad since there are B vitamins, protein, iron, and important fatty acids in bran (all of which is stripped away when grain is milled or refined). White rice, for example, is rice with the bran and germ removed, while a grain of brown rice still contains both. In the sixteenth century, bran also meant "dandruff flakes." Yum!

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Vocabulary lists containing bran

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Insoluble fiber — found in foods like whole wheat and wheat bran — helps clear out the gut, and is not digested.

From MarketWatch • May 10, 2026

They are especially great on top of bran muffins or blueberry muffins, Ziata said.

From Salon • Mar. 31, 2026

Insoluble fibres, found in wholegrain bread, bran and the skins of fruit and vegetables, help our poo travel through the gut.

From BBC • Jan. 16, 2026

Rice bran has several attributes that make it an excellent source of therapeutic pdNPs.

From Science Daily • Apr. 22, 2024

It had been no uncommon sight to see a man-at-arms whistling like a lobster, and looking like porridge, because they had emptied a bucket of boiling bran over his armour during a siege.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

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