grain alcohol

American  

noun

1. alcohol.

---

grain alcohol British  

noun

1. ethanol containing about 10 per cent of water, made by the fermentation of grain

---

Etymology

Origin of grain alcohol

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

They seem exhausted, and their consumption of sports is akin to drinking grain alcohol out of a firehose.

From Slate • Mar. 17, 2021

A House workgroup report showed ABC sold more than $13,000 in grain alcohol during the 2016 fiscal year to purchasers holding special permits for industrial, commercial, culinary or medical purposes.

From Washington Times • Feb. 16, 2017

Beneath a velvet curtain, four whole tiger carcasses wallow in a vat of grain alcohol atop a carpet of glistening ginseng root.

From Time • Nov. 21, 2016

Randi Brecher, owner of Creative Cakes in Silver Spring, said that after 15 years of using 190-proof grain alcohol on cakes costing up to $2,000, she’s switching to 151-proof, which works almost as well.

From Washington Post

Use 4 drams grain alcohol, 2 drams orange shellac, 5 drams tincture of benzoin, 1 teaspoonful of olive oil.

From Handwork in Wood by Noyes, William