cornflakes

American

[kawrn-fleyks] / ˈkɔrnˌfleɪks /

Or corn flakes

noun

(used with a plural verb)

a packaged breakfast cereal in the form of small toasted flakes made from corn, for serving cold with milk, sugar, etc.

cornflakes British

/ ˈkɔːnˌfleɪks /

plural noun

a breakfast cereal made from toasted maize, eaten with milk, sugar, etc

"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

Etymology

Origin of cornflakes

1905–10, corn ¹ + flakes, plural of flake ¹

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:

cornflakes

From cornflakes to the pacemaker, some of our most beloved—and useful—products were born of blunders.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 5, 2026

The popularity of the hermit crab as a pet soared in the 1970s, when one company branded them “Crazy Crabs” and told buyers they would eat anything: pizza, cookies, cornflakes!

From Slate ● Aug. 19, 2025

The beverage and humble ingredient is made by lightly toasting 2 3/4 cups of cornflakes and steeping it in 3 3/4 cups of cold milk for 20 minutes.

From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2025

This time I had to shrug and remind myself: It’s a good thing I like cornflakes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 15, 2025

She slammed a bowl of cornflakes in front of me.

From "When I Was Puerto Rican" by Esmeralda Santiago

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023