definitions

gram

1
[ gram ]
/ græm /
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR gram ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a metric unit of mass or weight equal to 15.432 grains; one thousandth of a kilogram. Abbreviation: g

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RELATED WORDS

matriarch, ancestor, granny, grandma, dowager

Nearby words

grains, grains of paradise, grainy, grallatorial, gralloch, gram, gram atom, gram calorie, gram equivalent, gram molecule, gram's method
Also especially British, gramme.

Origin of gram

1
1790–1800; < French gramme < Late Latin gramma a small weight < Greek grámma something drawn, a small weight

Definition for gram (2 of 7)

gram

2
[ gram ]
/ græm /

noun

(in the East Indies) the chickpea used as a food for people and cattle.
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
1695–1705; < Portuguese grão < Latin grānum grain

Definition for gram (3 of 7)

Gram

[ grahm ]
/ grɑm /

noun

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

Origin of Gram

From the Old Norse word Gramr literally, angry, evil

Definition for gram (4 of 7)

gram.

grammar.
grammarian.
grammatical.

Definition for gram (5 of 7)

-gram

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).
Compare -graph.

Origin of -gram

1
< Greek -gramma, combining form of grámma something written or drawn; akin to carve

Definition for gram (6 of 7)

-gram

2

a combining form of gram1: kilogram.

Definition for gram (7 of 7)

-gram

3

a combining form extracted from telegram, used in the formation of compound words that have the general sense “message, bulletin”: culturegram; electiongram; prophecy-gram.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for gram

British Dictionary definitions for gram (1 of 5)

gram

1
/ (ɡræm) /

noun

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

Word Origin for gram

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

British Dictionary definitions for gram (2 of 5)

gram

2
/ (ɡræm) /

noun

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
the seed of any of these plants

Word Origin for gram

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

British Dictionary definitions for gram (3 of 5)

gram

3
/ (ɡrɑːm) /

noun

(in India) a village

Word Origin for gram

Hindi

British Dictionary definitions for gram (4 of 5)

gram.

abbreviation for

grammar
grammatical

British Dictionary definitions for gram (5 of 5)

-gram

n combining form

indicating a drawing or something written or recordedhexagram; telegram

Word Origin for -gram

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

Medicine definitions for gram (1 of 3)

gram

[ grăm ]

n.

A metric unit of mass equal to 15.432 grains, one thousandth (10-3) of a kilogram, or 0.035 ounce.

Medicine definitions for gram (2 of 3)

Gram

[ grăm, gräm ]
Hans Christian Joachim 1853-1938

Danish physician who developed (1884) Gram's stain as a method of distinguishing types of bacteria.

Medicine definitions for gram (3 of 3)

-gram

suff.

Something written or drawn; a record:cardiogram.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Science definitions for gram (1 of 2)

gram

[ grăm ]

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

Science definitions for gram (2 of 2)

Gram

[ gräm, grăm ]
Hans Christian Joachim 1853-1938

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.

Culture 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.