graft

¹ American  

[graft, grahft] / græft, grɑft /

noun

1. Horticulture.

   1. a bud, shoot, or scion of a plant inserted in a groove, slit, or the like in a stem or stock of another plant in which it continues to grow.

   2. the plant resulting from such an operation; the united stock and scion.

   3. the place where the scion is inserted.

2. Surgery. a portion of living tissue surgically transplanted from one part of an individual to another, or from one individual to another, for its adhesion and growth.

3. an act of grafting.

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verb (used with object)

1. to insert (a graft) into a tree or other plant; insert a scion of (one plant) into another plant.

2. to cause (a plant) to reproduce through grafting.

3. Surgery. to transplant (a portion of living tissue, as of skin or bone) as a graft.

4. to attach as if by grafting.

   an absurdity grafted onto an otherwise coherent body of thought.

5. Nautical. to cover (a rope) with a weaving of rope yarn.

verb (used without object)

1. to insert scions from one plant into another.

2. to become grafted.

   Synonyms:

   transplant, implant, adhere, join, transplant

graft ² American  

[graft, grahft] / græft, grɑft /

noun

1. the acquisition of money, gain, or advantage by dishonest, unfair, or illegal means, especially through the abuse of one's position or influence in politics, business, etc.

2. a particular instance, method, or means of thus acquiring gain or advantage.

3. the gain or advantage acquired.

4. British Slang. work; labor.

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verb (used with object)

1. to obtain by graft.

verb (used without object)

1. to practice graft.

graft ¹ British  

/ ɡrɑːft /

noun

1. work (esp in the phrase hard graft )

2. 1. the acquisition of money, power, etc, by dishonest or unfair means, esp by taking advantage of a position of trust

   2. something gained in this way, such as profit from government business

   3. a payment made to a person profiting by such a practice

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verb

1. (intr) to work

2. to acquire by or practise graft

graft ² British  

/ ɡrɑːft /

noun

1. horticulture

   1. a piece of plant tissue (the scion), normally a stem, that is made to unite with an established plant (the stock), which supports and nourishes it

   2. the plant resulting from the union of scion and stock

   3. the point of union between the scion and the stock

2. surgery a piece of tissue or an organ transplanted from a donor or from the patient's own body to an area of the body in need of the tissue

3. the act of joining one thing to another by or as if by grafting

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verb

1. horticulture

   1. to induce (a plant or part of a plant) to unite with another part or (of a plant or part of a plant) to unite in this way

   2. to produce (fruit, flowers, etc) by this means or (of fruit, flowers, etc) to grow by this means

2. to transplant (tissue) or (of tissue) to be transplanted

3. to attach or incorporate or become attached or incorporated

   to graft a happy ending onto a sad tale

graft Scientific  

/ grăft /

1. A shoot or bud of one plant that is inserted into or joined to the stem, branch, or root of another plant so that the two grow together as a single plant. Grafts are used to strengthen or repair plants, create dwarf trees, produce seedless fruit, and increase fruit yields without requiring plants to mature from seeds.

2. A piece of body tissue that is surgically removed and then transplanted or implanted to replace a damaged part or compensate for a defect.

3. See also allograft autograft and xenograft

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1. To join a graft to another plant.

2. To transplant or implant a graft.

graft Cultural  

1. In politics, the illegal acceptance of bribes by government officials.

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Other Word Forms

• grafter noun
• grafting noun

Etymology

Origin of graft¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; earlier graff, Middle English graffe, craffe, from Old French graife, greffe, graffe, from Late Latin graphium “hunting knife” ( Latin: “stylus”), from Greek grapheîon “pencil, paint brush,”derivative of gráphein “to write”; so called from the resemblance of the point of a (cleft) graft to a stylus; English excrescent t as in against ( def. )

Origin of graft²

First recorded in 1855–60; perhaps special use of graft ¹

Explanation

Graft can mean bribery or corruption. It's also a way of transplanting skin or bones in medicine, as in a skin graft. People who get terrible burns on their faces often have pieces of skin taken from other parts of their bodies to help them heal and look better. That transplanted skin is called a graft. There are also grafts in agriculture, when farmers take a branch from one tree and graft it onto another tree. The most common use of graft is in political corruption cases when politicians are accused of taking money in exchange for granting favors.

Example Sentences

You’ve done the hard graft at $14 an hour.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 22, 2026

Some of these technocrats have been purged in the past two years amid a crackdown on graft in China’s military and defense industry.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

And he never stopped, partly because graft is hard to root out from the system.

From BBC • Mar. 13, 2026

Researchers estimate that more than two million people worldwide require bone graft procedures each year.

From Science Daily • Mar. 7, 2026

“Looks like graft to me, O’Brien. Open it up.”

From "145th Street: Short Stories" by Walter Dean Myers

Related Words

• affix
• implant
• propagate