corn
noun
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.
corn
1 American
[kawrn]
/ kɔrn /
noun
-
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.
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the grain, seeds, or kernels of this plant, used for human food or for fodder.
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the ears of this plant.
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the edible seed of certain other cereal plants, especially wheat in England and oats in Scotland.
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the plants themselves.
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Skiing. corn snow.
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Informal. old-fashioned, trite, or mawkishly sentimental material, as a joke, a story, or music.
verb (used with object)
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corns,
present (3rd person singular)
-
corned,
past participle, past
-
corning
present participle
-
to preserve and season with salt in grains.
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to preserve and season with brine.
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to granulate, as gunpowder.
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to plant (land) with corn.
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to feed with corn.
corn
2
American
[kawrn]
/ kɔrn /
noun
Pathology.
-corn
3
American
Corn.
4
American
abbreviation
-
Cornish.
-
Cornwall.
corn
1
British
/ kɔːn /
noun
-
-
any of various cereal plants, esp the predominant crop of a region, such as wheat in England and oats in Scotland and Ireland
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the seeds of such plants, esp after harvesting
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a single seed of such plants; a grain
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British equivalent: maize. Also called: Indian corn.
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a tall annual grass, Zea mays, cultivated for its yellow edible grains, which develop on a spike
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the grain of this plant, used for food, fodder, and as a source of oil See also sweet corn popcorn
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-
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the plants producing these kinds of grain considered as a growing crop
spring corn
-
( in combination )
a cornfield
-
-
short for corn whisky
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slang an idea, song, etc, regarded as banal or sentimental
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archaic any hard particle or grain
verb
-
to feed (animals) with corn, esp oats
-
-
to preserve in brine
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to salt
-
-
to plant corn on
corn
2
British
/ kɔːn /
noun
-
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
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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cornsimple
-
cornssimple
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have cornedperfect
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has cornedperfect
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am corningprogressive
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are corningprogressive
-
is corningprogressive
-
have been corningperfect progressive
-
has been corningperfect progressive
Past
-
cornedsimple
-
had cornedperfect
-
was corningprogressive
-
were corningprogressive
-
had been corningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of corn1
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
Origin of corn2
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
Origin of -corn3
Representing Latin -cornis horned
Explanation
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."
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.
See Examples For:
"British bakers are beginning to explore corn more confidently".
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026
In France, farmers are bracing for their smallest corn crop since 1980, and winegrowers are reporting some of the earliest harvests on record.
From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026
For me, that has meant chicken with scallions and frozen ginger cubes; shaved corn with poblano and onion; butternut squash with thyme and shallots; grated tomato with basil and garlic.
From Salon ● Aug. 25, 2026
As the first ray of sun hit on an unexpectedly frosty August morning, a few hundred just-graduated Ukrainian paratroopers were traipsing across a corn and rapeseed field, preparing for their first jump.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
He hung on to the side of the ship for dear life, and all he could think about were the rows of corn waving in the hot sun.
From "The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs" by Betty G. Birney
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
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 Henry Nicholson Ellacombe
I directed Sergt Gass & 2 men to accompany him to his Village, they Soon returned loaded with Corn. the Chief and his wife also came down.
From The Journals of Lewis and Clark, 1804-1806 by Meriwether Lewis
In Welsh the result is ei, in Corn. and Bret. e, e.g.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 5 "Cat" to "Celt" by Various
It’s built around the idea of a tale of two corns.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2024
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
As for nutrition, 19 candy corns amount to about 140 calories and 28 grams of sugar.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 24, 2023
Calluses and corns are thickened areas of skin that form on toes or the soles of feet as a result of pressure, often from poorly fitting shoes.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 18, 2022
“Three corns and one roast raven,” said Dolorous Edd.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
Dishes she's made range from panackelty, a stew consisting of potatoes, onions and corned beef, to Staffordshire oatcakes, a type of yeasted pancake, and Lancashire hotpot, made with mutton or lamb.
From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026
Though a corned beef and cabbage plate may be synonymous with St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in the U.S., the dish is more rooted in Irish-American culture than traditional Irish culture.
From Salon ● Mar. 16, 2024
“We would do corned beef tacos over there,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 18, 2023
For an article on deli sandwiches, she collected 104 corned beef and pastrami samples in one day to evaluate the meat and sandwich-building techniques.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 7, 2023
“Oh, there’s corned beef and plenty of potatoes, and I shall get some asparagus and a lobster, ‘for a relish’, as Hannah says.
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
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.
