gram

1
[ gram ]
See synonyms for gram on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a metric unit of mass or weight equal to 15.432 grains; one thousandth of a kilogram. Abbreviation: g

Origin of gram

1
1790–1800; <French gramme<Late Latin gramma a small weight <Greek grámma something drawn, a small weight
  • Also especially British, gramme .

Words Nearby gram

Other definitions for gram (2 of 7)

gram2
[ gram ]

noun
  1. (in the East Indies) the chickpea used as a food for people and cattle.

  2. any of several other beans, as the mung bean, Vigna radiata(green gram, or golden gram ), or the urd, V. mungo(black gram ).

Origin of gram

2
First recorded in 1695–1705; from Portuguese grão, from Latin grānum “seed, grain, kernel”; see origin at grain

Other definitions for Gram (3 of 7)

Gram
[ grahm ]

noun
  1. (in the Volsunga Saga) the sword of Sigmund, broken by Odin, repaired by Regin, and used again by Sigurd in killing Fafnir.

Origin of Gram

3
From the Old Norse word Gramr literally, angry, evil

Other definitions for -gram (4 of 7)

-gram1

  1. a combining form occurring in loanwords from Greek, where it meant “something written,” “drawing” (epigram; diagram); on this model, used in the formation of compound words (oscillogram).

Origin of -gram

4
<Greek -gramma, combining form of grámma something written or drawn; akin to carve

Other definitions for -gram (5 of 7)

-gram2

  1. a combining form of gram1: kilogram.

Other definitions for -gram (6 of 7)

-gram3

  1. a combining form extracted from telegram, used in the formation of compound words that have the general sense “message, bulletin”: culturegram; electiongram; prophecy-gram.

Other definitions for gram. (7 of 7)

gram.

abbreviation
  1. grammar.

  2. grammarian.

  1. grammatical.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use gram in a sentence

  • Recognition of the pneumococcus depends upon its morphology, the fact that it is gram-staining, and the presence of a capsule.

    A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell Todd
  • The great majority belong to the colon bacillus group, and are negative to gram's method of staining.

    A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell Todd
  • A gram-positive stool due to cocci is suggestive of intestinal ulceration.

    A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell Todd
  • gram's method (p. 40) is a very useful aid in distinguishing certain bacteria.

    A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell Todd
  • This is a minute, slender rod, which lies within and between the pus-corpuscles (Fig. 125), and is negative to gram's stain.

    A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell Todd

British Dictionary definitions for gram (1 of 5)

gram1

/ (ɡræm) /


noun
  1. a metric unit of mass equal to one thousandth of a kilogram. It is equivalent to 15.432 grains or 0.002 205 pounds: Symbol: g

Origin of gram

1
C18: from French gramme, from Late Latin gramma, from Greek: small weight, from graphein to write

British Dictionary definitions for gram (2 of 5)

gram2

/ (ɡræm) /


noun
  1. any of several leguminous plants, such as the beans Phaseolus mungo (black gram or urd) and P. aureus (green gram), whose seeds are used as food in India

  2. the seed of any of these plants

Origin of gram

2
C18: from Portuguese gram (modern spelling grão), from Latin grānum grain

British Dictionary definitions for gram (3 of 5)

gram3

/ (ɡrɑːm) /


noun
  1. (in India) a village

Origin of gram

3
Hindi

British Dictionary definitions for -gram (4 of 5)

-gram

n combining form
  1. indicating a drawing or something written or recorded: hexagram; telegram

Origin of -gram

4
from Latin -gramma, from Greek, from gramma letter and grammē line

British Dictionary definitions for gram. (5 of 5)

gram.

abbreviation for
  1. grammar

  2. grammatical

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

Scientific definitions for gram (1 of 2)

gram

[ grăm ]


  1. A unit of mass in the metric system, equal to 0.001 kilogram or 0.035 ounce. See Table at measurement.

Scientific definitions for Gram (2 of 2)

Gram

[ gräm, grăm ]


  1. Danish bacteriologist who in 1884 developed a method of staining bacteria, called Gram's stain or Gram's dye, that is used to identify and classify bacteria, often from samples of infected body fluids. The classification, called gram-negative or gram-positive, can be useful in the initial selection of antibiotics to treat the infection.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for gram

gram

The basic unit of measurement for mass in the metric system; one cubic centimeter of water has a mass of approximately one gram.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.